Painted Faces
by Pikachulover25
Summary: Namine is in high school, but she's not living the high school life. When Kairi drags her to a party one night, she meets a boy who will turn her life upside down. The thing about high school is that you never know what's hiding under the mask. Namine never expected how much one night with a certain boy could completely change her simple life.
1. Chapter 1

sorry that this is reaaaaallly long but I wrote this a while ago and I just decided to upload it and I think I divided the chapters wrong, but here it is.

* * *

><p>"Don't say we're not right for each other because the way I see it, we might not be right for anyone else." The Cutting Edge<p>

* * *

><p>There was a reason why she never went to parties, least of all the ones her friend Kairi invited her to. She was a wallflower; there was no doubt about it. Many would easily describe her as beautiful girl. Not pretty, beautiful. She had soft blond hair that was the color of the morning sunshine and soft blue eyes like the sky. Her name was Naminé Kumiko, the daughter of the one of the most renowned scientists in the world. She was a shy, humble girl, graceful and quiet. Although her beauty shined upon the world, she was hardly noticed among her classmates.<p>

Naminé attended a very prestigious school where the most elite and wealthy heirs of families went. She had few friends there with the exception of her one best friend, Kairi. Kairi was very pretty, with dark auburn hair, sparkling eyes, and a great figure. She was a social butterfly, exactly the opposite of Naminé. The two had been best friends since elementary school and they were nearly inseparable. Kairi always looked out for her best friend, as she was usually the object of attention, but for all the wrong reasons. While Kairi tended to spend her time socializing and going to parties, Naminé often sat alone drawing. She was not bullied, but teased. No one understood her. She was simply known as the girl who always sat alone at lunch with nothing but her sketchpad. This was one of the things that the two friends easily disagreed on. Kairi tried with much opposition to get Naminé to get out and go to parties with her, but Naminé always refused.

"Naminé! You haven't gone to one single party in High School. What do you want to look back on when we're all grown up? You've got to get out once in a while!" Kair flicked her hair over shoulder, making Naminé roll her eyes.

"I'll have my drawings to look back on," she said quietly. Kairi pouted her pink lips. She obviously didn't think that was credible. "I don't want to be like everyone else. You've known me since we little, Kairi. You of all people know that I'm not like other people."

"That's not an excuse," said Kairi. "Please, please will you go with me tonight? Just for me?"

Naminé bit her lip. She really wanted to tell her no, but she knew that she had used that way too much. It had been four years; she doubted that Kairi would let her off the hook anytime soon. "Fine. I'll go with you, but that's it. I'm not going with you to any more after this one."

Kairi grinned, showing off her perfectly straight pearly whites. "Thanks, Naminé!" She hugged the blonde, making her squirm uncomfortably. Now she really wasn't sure why she even agreed to go.

"Who's throwing this party anyways?" she asked carefully.

Kairi shrugged nonchalantly. "I don't know I just have the address. But who cares? It's a party isn't it? And it's going to be your first one too! You have to come over to my house tonight, 'kay?" Kairi was bouncing now on the balls of her feet.

"All right. I guess." Naminé rubbed her hands over the hem of her skirt. She was very glad when the bell rang, signaling the end their lunchtime. Kairi quickly grabbed her bag and began to run off. Then she turned around and waved back at her.

"I'll see you at six!" Those words gave Naminé a sour taste in her mouth. She reluctantly picked up her bag and left her quiet sanctuary under the small shady tree. The only thing she could think of was what she had just signed her life away for. She was definitely not looking forward to that night.

* * *

><p>"Naminé, you look amazing!" Kairi squealed. Naminé gave a nervous glace at the mirror in front of her. It was Kairi who had chosen what she was to wear since she claimed that nothing in Naminé's wardrobe was "party appropriate". In those terms, Naminé wasn't so sure she wanted to know what "party appropriate" was.<p>

She was wearing a short denim skirt that came a few inches above her knees and a light pink babydoll shirt with a white cardigan. Some shining silver bracelets hung around her small wrists and a matching necklace around her neck. Naminé tried not to wince. She never wore anything like what Kairi had dressed her in. She preferred white and loose dresses than skin-tight clothes and bright, noticeable colors.

Naminé looked over. She thought Kairi looked amazing, although she always did. She was wearing a black minidress and a sequined silver vest over it. She wore lots of jewelry and had perfect makeup. Kairi would have fit in for a photoshoot with models. Naminé sighed. As usual, Kairi outshone her, not with her appearance, but also with her demeanor. She had an accurate prediction that the boys would be flocking all around her tonight.

Naminé was in a daze the whole time as they drove to the house where the party was. It was not until they walked in and she saw the strobe lights and heard the blaring music that she was woken from her reverie. There were people in every nook in cranny of the huge mansion. They were sliding down the banister, hanging over the sofa, dancing on the tables, the counters, everywhere. To Naminé it was overwhelming. It was so loud she wanted to cover her ears.

She looked over to Kairi, but she was nowhere to be found. Then she caught a glimpse of her auburn hair over the throng of people, half of which seemed to be surrounding her. Naminé was not surprised. Then she saw the familiar messy hair of Kairi's boyfriend, Sora nearby. Naminé just wanted to sink into the background since no one was going to pay attention to her.

"You seem kinda lonely there," said a voice. Naminé looked up into a pair of deep blue eyes that were as dark as a stormy ocean. He shrugged when he saw her eyes wide. "You don't have to talk to me, I just wanted to escape from my rowdy friends when I saw you."

Naminé tried to open her mouth and respond, but she found her mouth dry. The boy in front of her laughed.

"I'm Ven," he said, holding out his hand. Naminé thought it was strange he wanted to shake her hand, but he seemed nice enough, so she accepted. His grip wasn't sweaty and slightly callused, but not uncomfortably so.

"Naminé." she said.

Ven nodded. "I know who you are."

Naminé looked at him oddly. Ven put his hands up, shaking them as his eyes widened in realization.

"No, I'm not some kind of creeper or something. It's just that I know who your father is and I see you sitting under that tree of yours a lot," He smiled and Naminé got a glance of his charming smile.

Naminé blinked. "I'm sorry, but I don't think I've seen you before at school."

Ven shrugged. "I do classes at the college though, so I'm not at school very often. I try not to draw too much attention," He laughed to himself. "Unfortunately I have a handful of crazy friends to deal with, so most of the time it's not as easy as it sounds."

Naminé listened attentively to Ven. His voice was somewhat deep and he spoke almost in a monotone. He fascinated her for a reason she did not know. She had never been so interested in a boy before, and it made her feel strange inside.

"So, what are you doing here at Lea's party? I would never have thought you would come to such a crazy party."

"I don't even know who Lea is." Naminé said bashfully. Ven nonchalantly pointed over to spikes of fiery red hair over by the DJ.

"He's ones of my friends, so I kinda had to be here." Ven said, shoving his hands into the pockets jeans.

As Naminé turned her gaze from Lea's spiky hair she realized that she

hadn't answered his question. "Kairi dragged me here. She said that I had to come a party as part of my High School career."

Ven lifted his chin. "Ah, that makes sense. I'm sorry you got dragged into this. It's never as fun when you don't want to be here."

Naminé was glad that he understood her uncomfortable position and that he had a least a little sympathy for her. She felt a strange urge to keep talking to Ven, even though she had never met him. She suddenly understood that this was how people made small talk.

"Do you come to parties like these a lot?"

Ven twisted his lip into something like a wince and a smirk. "Yeah, Lea holds parties a lot, so I'm pretty much obliged to make an appearance. I probably wouldn't come if I had a better reason, though."

Naminé was surprised at his response. "What else would you do?"

The look on Ven's face at her question instantly made her regret asking. "I…I go out into the city." Ven's lips tightened as if he were holding back something.

Just then, laughing caught Naminé's ears and Kairi and Sora came over to them. Kairi's face was bright with blush and Sora was grinning, his face almost stuck in that position. Naminé was not aware of Ven's sudden change of expression, his eyebrows lowering and the shadow creeping over his face.

"Naminé! Sora and I were going to go out and take a walk. I don't know how long you want to stay, but—"

"I can walk Naminé home," Ven said quietly. Naminé looked at him. She didn't expect him to say that. Ven looked into her eyes. "Really, it's not a big deal."

"I…all right." Naminé didn't know what else to say. She couldn't really say no.

Kairi smiled her trademark smile. "Great! I'll see you tomorrow then, Naminé!"

Naminé nervously watched as the two rushed out the door. She was going to be alone with Ven. It wasn't as if she didn't trust him, but she hadn't really ever been alone with a boy before. The next thing she knew, Ven was pulling her along behind them. His grip was firm, which made her slightly nervous.

"Oh, you don't know where I live." Naminé felt uncomfortable saying this, but Ven seemed unfazed. Naminé told Ven her address. He didn't respond.

The night air was cool and it bit at the flashes of Naminé's esposed skin. The moon was out and the stars looked as if they were even further away up in the sky than normal. Ven walked fast and evenly. As he pulled her along, she felt slightly scared at his unresponsiveness and his strong grip.

"I'm sorry that I'm taking you away from the party." Naminé said, her voice quiet. She was afraid that she was disturbing his thoughts since his face was pensive and brooding. She almost thought that he would not respond, but he surprised her by turning his face to her.

"It's fine. I like my time alone. My favorite time is night, so I don't mind being out at times like this."

Naminé didn't know what to make of Ven's statement. In a way, it somewhat troubled her just by the fact that he liked to go around the city and his favorite time was night. She felt as if she was drawing too many conclusions, but she guessed that it never hurt to be too careful.

Ven stopped walking and Naminé almost walked into him. She looked up and noticed that they were at her house. He walked faster than she thought. Ven was looking at her and she gathered the courage to look him in the eye. There was shadow over his face from the lights of her house. It made him look a little menacing, especially with his brooding expression.

"Thank you for walking me home." Naminé watched his reaction as she spoke to him. Ven looked up from his feet and met her eyes. She noticed that his blue eyes were even darker, almost black.

"You're welcome. You shouldn't have walked alone at this time of night anyways." said Ven, his lips barely moving. Naminé smiled at his response, but not as brightly as she would have in another situation. His latter sentence gave her a sense of foreboding, although she didn't know if it was intended or not.

Naminé took a step onto her doorstep. "Good night, Ven."

Ven gave her one last smile, which was barely visible from the shadows on his face. "'Night."

Naminé regretted shutting the door as she stepped inside her house. He was a nice boy, she decided, only slightly suspicious. No, that wasn't the right word. Ven was mysterious, but he certainly was enjoyable company. Was this what was alluring to boys, their mysteriousness? Naminé knew that Kairi would simply laugh at her phrasing, but she was serious. Many differences existed between males and females, and no matter how good a relationship was, there were always secrets.

Naminé made her way down the hallway, treading quietly as she passed the closed door of her father's office. He always worked late in there, getting as much done as he could in a day. She didn't dare disturb him and his work ethic, so she continued up the stairs and into her room.

After she undressed, Naminé laid down on her bed, reflecting on her unusual night. When she closed her eyes, what she saw were Ven's stormy blue eyes. As she opened them, Naminé realized that she had never actually looked at _him_. The whole time she had looked at his face, but never once did she take in what he was wearing. She tried to think as hard as she could and yet she could not remember anything else about him. She finally gathered that he had been wearing a long sleeved garment, most likely a coat since she had felt its cuff brush against her hand as he had pulled her along on their walk.

Thinking of their walk, Naminé couldn't get his ominous statement out her head. Was he talking from experience when he mentioned the potential dangers of walking alone at night? He didn't seem like someone to have such a haunted past, but she supposed that one never knew. Naminé wanted to trust him. She always looked for an excuse to trust anyone, and she thought that Ven was no exception.

She wanted to see him again, but her heart sunk when she remembered that he wasn't at school very much since he said he took classes at the college. That meant she wouldn't be able to see him much. Naminé sighed as she brushed a strand of stray hair from her brow. She would just have to be optimistic, which she wasn't often, and hope that she would come across him at school.

The next day Naminé was upset that she didn't get to see Ven at school. Rather than drawing during lunch she spent the time looking for his blonde spikes but to no avail. She didn't even see Lea, so she suspected that he took classes at the college like Ven.

After lunch as she was walking to class with Kairi, Naminé was bombarded with questions since she had been occupied during the party with Sora.

"So, what happened between you and Ven?" she asked anxiously, her eyes wide and expectant.

Naminé shrugged, casting her eyes down. "Nothing, we just talked."

"Naminé¸ I saw how you were looking at him. So did you two hit it off?" gushed Kairi.

Naminé sighed. "I don't know, we just talked, Kairi. He seemed nice, although he was kind of mysterious, I suppose," Naminé shouldered her bag nervously. "Kairi, how well do you know Ven?"

Kairi glanced upward in thought. "I don't know him all that well, but I know that he is known more for his friends. He's shifty, you could say, I know that Sora doesn't like him, but I don't know why that is."

"Sora doesn't like him?" Naminé was surprised. Sora was the most optimistic and energetic person she knew. She had never known him to not like anything or anyone.

"I don't know. He just kind of gives them a weird glare whenever he sees them. It's like he has some sort of grudge or something." Kairi said dismissively.

Naminé nodded slowly. "Now that I think of it, I remember Ven got kind of stiff when you two came up to us."

"You can ask him when you see him next, then Naminé." Kairi said grinning as they entered their classroom.

Naminé looked at her, a blank expression on her face. "Kairi, I don't know when I'm going to see him next. I don't even know his last name." she said, sitting down in her desk.

Kairi giggled, plopping down in the desk in front of her. "Naminé, he's in our grade. I thought you were supposed to be the wise, knowledgeable one. Strife, Ventus Strife." she answered.

Naminé leaned forward towards Kairi. "Strife? That's an interesting last name."

"More like ironic." said Kairi.

The bell rang just as the last students entered the classroom. Naminé sat back in her seat, thinking to herself. Ventus Strife. So Ven was short for his full name. How comes she had never heard of him before? Maybe he transferred later in our school years, thought Naminé.

Even later that day she couldn't stop thinking of him. It was strange, for never before had something not related to art or academics been stuck in her head for so long. Naminé self diagnosed herself that something was wrong with her, but she just didn't know what. She didn't find a somewhat solid answer until the next day when she finally saw him.

Naminé noticed him from her spot under the tree. He was with his friends during lunch, laughing and looking much happier than he had been at the party. Lea was to his right and a kid with a dirty blonde faux hawk was in front of him. She couldn't help herself and this time fully looked at the mysterious boy from the party.

Ven was wearing the school uniform that was required, but it wasn't messy like his companions'. His pants were slightly baggy and his shirt and jacket were neat only with wrinkles at the elbows. His shirt collar was not very neatly creased however with the corners almost turned up and his tie lay flat down his chest. Naminé noticed that Ven was very slim with a thin torso. She also noticed that he was short compared to some of the other boys at the school. He wasn't much taller than her, rather about the same height as Sora. Lea was much taller than him while the other boy stood only a few inches over Ven. Naminé couldn't believe that such an attractive looking guy had found interest in her at a darkened party.

She didn't realize that she was nearly staring at the small group until, almost by coincidence, Ven turned her direction. Naminé didn't have enough time to look down at her sketchbook, which was slanted away from her, when his blue eyes met hers. It almost felt like time froze for those few seconds until Ven's lips tweaked upward into a smirk-like smile. Naminé's breath hitched in her throat as he began walking over. She felt even more nervous when she saw the looks Ven's friends had on their faces.

"How are you, Naminé?" Ven asked cordially. Naminé tore her eyes from Lea and the boy with the faux hawk and looked up at him. He was giving her a full smile now, as if he knew what expression the other two had on their faces.

"F-fine, I've been good. How are you?" Naminé stammered.

Ven rubbed the back of his neck. "I've been OK."

In order to avoid an awkward silence, Naminé continued conversing. "I didn't see you yesterday." Naminé then realized how discomfiting the statement was and averted her gaze from his.

"I had class then. I take classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays." he said, a smile curling on his lips at her comment.

Naminé guessed that he had given her the days that he wasn't at school for a reason. Or was that just her imagination?

"Uh, who's your other friend?" she asked.

Ven waved his two friends over, making Naminé's heart pound. He was going to introduce them to her? She had never been around so many boys at once, especially all alone.

"This is Lea, as I pointed out at the party," Ven mock-punched the red head, who held his hand out for Naminé. She shook it and tilted her head up to look up at him. He had a long face and two peculiar green inverse tear tattoos under his eyes that brought out their bright green hue. His eyes carried an uneasy look, almost dangerous. It made her nervous. "And this is Dyme." Naminé gave a small smile at the blonde, who grinned at her. He had a lax appearance coinciding with his obvious easy-going attitude. His blue eyes were round and innocent yet he held a very teen-angst demeanor.

"Nice to meet you." said the two in unison, making Ven roll his eyes.

"Idiots," he muttered, making Naminé giggle. "I−"

The bell rang, cutting Ven off. His eyebrows lowered so he almost looked angry, but then he turned back to her.

"I'm glad that I got to see you today, Naminé. Maybe we'll see each other more often." He gave her a smile which sent a strange feeling through Naminé's body. Ven held up his hand in a silent farewell before he, Lea and Dyme turned and walked off.

Naminé sat on her bed facing an impossible decision. She felt the sweat in her palms as she held her rarely used cell phone in her hand. Kairi's name was already projected on the screen, a button away from contact and yet Naminé couldn't bring herself to call her best friend.

What she really needed to do was talk to Kairi about…boy troubles, something that Naminé had never had to face. Naminé never thought that she would come to this, and yet she could not stop thinking of Ven. It was a strange feeling; one of facination rather than curiosity, longing than infatuation.

When she thought back to when she met Ven at Lea's party, Naminé realized that she hadn't felt the "spark" Kairi always said she felt with Sora. No, it was more like something being pulled from her body, her soul, maybe? She didn't know, but it felt like something had been released from her, as if she had found something she hadn't known she had been looking for. It was hard to explain, but that was the only way Naminé could even attempt to describe it.

In defeat, Naminé fell back onto her bed. Ven probably saw her as a girl he met at a party, nothing else. She wasn't special, no matter how many people told her she was, or unique, or other appraising words. She was _different_, and Naminé knew it. She couldn't even describe herself in hardly a complimentary way. Who would even want to be with her?

It was a few hours later when Naminé woke up. She hadn't even realized that she had drifted off to sleep. She reluctantly stood up and dragged her feet across her room. She stopped in front of her mirror and couldn't help but stare at herself. Naminé flattened the hem of her white dress self-consciously. In one word, she thought she was _plain_. If someone looked into her closet it would be full of mainly white, some gray, and a few black clothes. The colors enhanced her already extremely pale skin. Her blonde hair almost clashed with the bleached white dresses she wore. Kairi's words echoed in her head, _monochrome freak_. Of course she would never tell that to her face, but Naminé knew if they weren't best friends, that's what she would be thinking.

That was what most of the school probably thought of her. Naminé's eyes ran over her skinny body. No one ever talked to her except for Kairi. She got along with nearly all of the teachers, and yet Ven still approached her at school. But _why_? It was puzzling for Naminé, something she questioned nearly ever hour ever since she met him.

She was tearing herself to pieces over a boy. She was falling apart. Soon she would be as good as a ghost; no one would notice her, not even Kairi. She would simply blend into the crowd so that not even Ven would pay her attention.

Naminé felt like she had a drizzly gray cloud drifing over her head for the rest of week. What made it worse was that Kairi was hanging out even more with Sora than before. Naminé sat at lunch, alone with nothing to stare at but her sketchpad. She hadn't drawn anything for days. She felt empty.

"Are you all right?" Slowly Naminé lifted her head only to meet the eyes of Ven. He was bent over so that his eyes were level with hers. Surprisingly, they were full of concern and emotion.

Naminé couldn't answer, as her throat was too dry. She felt a barely audible squeak escape from her lips as Ven's fingers touched the sensitive skin under her chin, lifting it so her face was directly facing his.

"I've heard that you've been having a rough week. Does that have something to do with me?"

Naminé wanted to shake her head, but it was small and hardly a motion. "Why do you care? Why do you care about a girl like me?"

Ven seemed taken aback at her statement and sat down next to on the cold stone bench. Naminé only just suppressed a shiver as his fingers left her skin.

"Should I not? If you think that I see you as just a girl I met at a party on a Monday night, then you're wrong." Naminé saw in his eyes that he was dead serious. The look in his eyes immediately told her that she could not oppose his statement.

"But—"

"I think you're lonely," Ven's voice was soft but it was also cold and somber. "I think that you've wanted someone to take notice of you, to cure you of your loneliness, but you've been so alone for so long that you can't absorb the fact that they just might want you to take them in as well."

Naminé's eyes were wide as he spoke, his last few words rushed like a secret spilling from the soul. It was a cool day, but Naminé didn't know if Ven's cheeks were white from what he had just told her or from the temperature.

"But you have friends. You go to parties and hang out with people. How could you be lonely?" Naminé dared to ask.

Ven's face fell slightly. He hesitated before responding. "They're not…I met them at where I work. If you think that I'm a free social roamer then you're wrong," He squeezed his hands together making his knuckles turn a sickly pale color. "I know you don't see it, but really I'm a lot like you, Naminé."

Naminé didn't respond. For a second she caught a glimpse of a small, lonely boy whom she realized must be how Ven felt on the inside. The sight was familiar in a melancholy way; it was how she sometimes pictured herself.

"You don't have to push everyone away so quickly, Naminé. I know that's how you survive; it's how I used to operate, but I learned that it's no way to live," Ven reached forward and touched his thumb against her cheek. "I'd like this as a way to propose a sort of friendship between us, Naminé. So, if you will accept?" His voice was nearly a murmur and it washed over Naminé like winter's breath, dry and icy.

Abrupty, Ven leaned back and rose from the bench, keeping his eye on her. "I can't really say think about it, but I'll wait. Act with actions, Naminé. It's the only way things get done in this world."

And then, he left. Naminé sat there alone once more, both puzzled and euphorious. He would wait for her. She felt like she was falling into limbo and she couldn't get out.

The weekend passed in a blur as Naminé tried to do anything to keep her mind off of the impending decision Ven presented her with. Every time it did cross her mind however, Naminé tried to convince herself that it really wasn't a difficult decision. It wasn't as if he had asked her to marry him, no it was nothing like that. He had simply asked her if they could develop a platonic relationship.

Naminé shook her head, sending her stray hairs flying from her stress over the matter. He had cared enough to ask her straight out if she wanted to be his friend. Then why was she having such a hard time with the decision? What had shaken her was that Ven had figured out what she had been afraid of admitting to herself: she was lonely. But it made her feel better when he had told her that he was the same way. _She was not alone_.

That was what had frightened Naminé in the first place. The whole time she had thought that she was alone in the world, and yet she wasn't. What she wanted was someone to bring her out of her darkness and understand. For years that's what she had to face on her own. Her father did not know what it felt like. He loved and supported her, but he also worked so much that they did not often have time alone together. Kairi may have been her best friend, but Naminé knew deep down that if they had not been friends from such a young age that they wouldn't be friends at all.

Naminé did not expect at all to meet the one person she needed to understand her at a Monday night party. She also did not expect that person to be someone like Ven. And yet here she was, contemplating what to make of him. How could she push him away one he was on the one that she had been looking for since so long ago? Naminé knew that she couldn't. It would be ridiculous if she did and then who knew if she'd be able to find someone that understood her as well as he did later on?

Naminé was walking to school on Monday when she reached her decision. It took the entire weekend to reach it, but she finally decided that she had to stop avoiding it. She knew that anything that she tried to run away from would always come back as a curse.

Naminé slowed her breathing as she thought through her final decision. She was not one who took risks, but always played it safe. The decision as not a safe one, and she was not completely comfortable with it, but there was no way around it. She dipped her head down and stared at her feet as they moved along the sidewalk. Naminé felt dizzy from all the considerations she had gone through during the weekend. She started when she felt a firm grip on her shoulder.

Naminé's hair whipped over her shoulder as she saw who had touched her. It was Ven. His icy blue eyes struck her once more and a small smile curled on his lips.

"Good morning, Naminé." he said calmly. She watched as he stuck his hands into his deep pockets.

"Good morning." she replied quietly. At her response, Ven's smile grew even more. Then in a second it was wiped off his face.

"Did you consider my proposal?" Ven asked, quickly getting to the heart of the matter.

Naminé couldn't help by sigh, thinking of all the time she had spent on it. She looked up to his face and was surprised that he looked crestfallen.

"I should've known you wouldn't want some stranger coming directly to you. I'll just leave then and−"

"No!" Naminé grabbed his arm as he had begun to retreat from her. "If you think that I was going to say no, then you were wrong. I-I thought about what you said about me, and you were right. I realized that I've been waiting too long for someone like you to understand me. I've always wanted someone who was like me."

Ven's eyes widened a fraction, then he relaxed, his eyes warming. "You accept?" His voice sounded shocked.

Naminé laughed. "Yes, I accept."

Ven smiled and glanced down at the sidewalk. "I'm sorry if I'm so formal. It's just that I didn't want to give you a bad impression."

Naminé gave him a smile. "You were trying to impress me?"

Ven looked at her slyly. "Did you think I was?"

She shrugged. "I don't know. I barely know you."

"Well then how about we have a more proper introduction?" Ven held out his hand. Naminé took it and shook it. "I'm Ventus Strife, but everyone calls me Ven. My father calls me by full name when he's being stern with me. And you can joke about my last name since I suppose it kinda goes with my life."

Naminé nodded. "Naminé Kumiko." she replied simply. Ven gave her a bright smile, one that fit in a strange way on his face, as if he didn't smile like that very often.

"What do you mean it goes with your life?" Naminé dared to ask.

Ven's eyes grew dark. He looked away from her. "Let's just say that my life is hardly normal by any standards." His tone was cold and told her that he didn't want to talk about it anymore.

"You're very mysterious, Ven," She said quietly. "I want to learn more about you, but if you keep locking things away within you I can't help you extract the things that hurt."

Ven met her gaze and it had bone chilling steel in them, as well as a watery blue that held the look of a sad young child. "I'm sorry if I seem to push you away. It's just that I'm not ready to delve deep inside me yet."

Naminé didn't know what to say. Ven was recessing deep into himself and building up defenses around him and he wouldn't let her in. She respected his privacy, but at the same time she knew that together they could solve their insecurities if he would just open up. Naminé felt that she was up to it since she now had someone to connect with, but she was worried about Ven.

As they continued on to the school, she couldn't help by notice that he seemed almost haunted by something, but she didn't know what. With is head dipped down she saw how the shadows crossed his face, giving him a look that worried Naminé. She tried to erase the thoughts from her head, but she couldn't; he was still a stranger to her. Was it really safe to trust him?


	2. Chapter 2

Yup, I did divide the chapters badly. Ok, so the first chapter is sort of the first 3 or 4 chapters combined. Oh well. Yeah, so this chapter is going to be REALLY short in comparison, but enjoy and don't forget to review!

* * *

><p>It turned out that Naminé hardly saw Ven during the week outside of school. They would walk to school together, then they had a couple classes together before he walked her home and disappeared wherever he went once school was out. Naminé often wondered where he went, but she also respected his privacy. He gave her time to think and consider things, so she thought it was best to allow him the same.<p>

Soon after they had begun their relationship, Naminé began to notice things about Ven that one would not normally see at first glance. She noticed how he turned cold as soon as he was left alone; his face turned somber and his eyes grew dark and brooding. Ven was quite aloof; sometimes she had an urge to leave him alone when she saw him, to not even approach him so not to disturb his deep private thoughts. Another curious thing she noticed was how fast his temper seemed to flare and lash out. He hadn't even presented it to her, but she had watched him change with his friends.

Naminé had been sitting on her familiar bench under the tree while watching Ven visit with Lea and Dyme. They had seemed to be on friendly terms as first, but then Lea said something that angered Ven. She watched as his brow furrowed, his golden eyebrows lowering over his stormy eyes dangerously. His lips curled and his body went tense.

Naminé was not able to hear what their argument was about since Ven had been speaking quietly to them, but from Lea and Dyme's reactions she gathered that it was something related to him. Ven was very personal about things, but she did not yet know why. He was curious, but Naminé had a dark, foreboding feeling about discovering why.

It was surprising to her though, one day when Ven told her that he couldn't walk her home from school. It had been two months, and this was the first time he had declined his previous action. Naminé had nodded and told him her understanding, but it still puzzled her why the occurrence was so sudden. She had watched silently as his figure retreated down the hill from the school. He looked so lonely to her.

Even that night as she walked home from Kairi's she still had the image of his figure disappearing down the hill. It hurt her for some reason; she felt as if he was abandoning her forever. But that was silly. Why would he be leaving her forever? She knew not a reason why he would be.

It as just after nightfall as she left Kairi's from their study session, the time in the evening when the sky seemed almost bruised from the day's wear upon it. Naminé had never liked the location of Kairi's townhouse in the middle of the city. It was too loud and was crammed in between other buildings. She much preferred the hill, which her house was upon, which looked down upon the city. There the sky was emptier and the sight of the stars at night was much more visible.

At this time she also did not like the stillness of the city. It was after rush hour and past dinner, so few people were out and about. It was so quiet that she could hear the sound her feet made against the sidewalk. She turned down a street when she could hear voices coming around a nearby corner. They sounded almost urgent and were hushed, as if they did not want to be heard.

Naminé couldn't help but glance around the corner where a group of people hidden in the shadows lurked. She saw they all were wearing hoods and long black coats. She could not see any faces. There were three of them and one had their back to her. She stopped. Naminé had never seen them before, such a strange group. She had no idea who they were, but they were shifty and they gave her a horrible sense just looking at them.

Naminé couldn't move; her feet felt like they were stuck in wet cement. She knew that she had to get out of there. Who knew what they were going to do if they caught her. She watched as one of the figures drew what looked like a knife from their coat and seemed to be flicking the blade in and out, in and out.

Naminé sucked in a sudden breath and tried to move away. As soon as she took a step a head jerked up. She immediately began moving faster, her steps turning into a sprint, her hair trailing behind her, whipping her in the face. She knew that as she ran faster her footsteps grew louder, but she had to get away, anywhere but there. Her breaths quickened when she heard more footsteps behind her as they hurried to catch up with her. They were following her, and at least one of them had a knife. Naminé didn't even want to know what they would do to her. But she couldn't think of that now; she had to get away.

Naminé almost let out a squeal as gloved and covered her mouth and she was pulled into a tight alleyway. Her eyes widened at the black gloves that were sealed over her lips. Who were these people? Naminé tried to move her lips beneath the weight of the gloved fingers but she was only answered by a muted whisper.

"Don't move. Don't say a thing." The voice was husky and deep and obviously male. The footsteps were approaching faster and he pulled her against him as he attempted to blend himself into the black shadows of alleyway.

"Who was that?" a gruff voice said as they passed.

"Looked like some teenage girl. Spooked, she won't say a thing." said another voice that sounded confident and nonchalant.

"We can't afford risks like that. Not with all the things going down now." said the first voice. There was a grunt in agreement before the footsteps faded away down the empty street.

The man who held her against him did not release Naminé until a few seconds after the footsteps were out of earshot. When he did let her go it felt slightly reluctant. She quickly spun around and looked up into the shadow of his cowl where his face was hidden.

"Who are you?" Naminé's heart was pounding. At the moment she didn't care why he helped her. As she took in the figure in front of her a realization dawned on her.

He was wearing a long black coat with the hood up, just like those in the group who had been trying to pursue her. With the coat on, he seemed very tall, like a tall shadow that towered over her. He was just like them. Now Naminé felt more in danger than she had before.

The figure's head lifted like he was raising his chin. "That is not important right now," He turned away. "Go now. Go home and don't tell anyone about this encounter." In his deep voice his words sounded commanding; Naminé did not hesitate to disregard his advice.


	3. Chapter 3

Woo! snow day, so this is a quicker update than I normally do so don't get your hopes up too much, but this chapter does change everything. It's kinda long but not as long as the first chapter, thank goodness! um, so there is a harsh scene in here, but I tried to write it as brief as I could so I hope I pulled it off. Please review and thanks for reading!

* * *

><p>Naminé slowly sunk into her bed as she reflected on what had just happened earlier that night. The black-coated figure that had saved her from the sinister gang in the alley was stuck in her mind as if it had been burned there. His voice, it hadn't been as deep and menacing as the other men's voices, and yet it still gave her the chills.<p>

Naminé wiped a hand across her forehead, pushing away the hairs that had stuck to the skin from the perspiration from her running. She had only heard of the gang that roamed the city's streets late at night: Organization XIII. She had seen them on the headlines on the newspapers her father read. He often got stressed about and tense about them, but she didn't know why.

Whispering to herself to reassure herself that she was safe, she couldn't stop thinking why the one member had hid her from sight of the others. Why did he save her? Why her? Slowly, Naminé drifted off to sleep only to be plagued by dreams of tall mysterious black figures with obscuring hoods over their faces so only their ominous grins showed beneath the shadows.

Kairi found the blonde sitting alone once again at lunch the next day. She quickly hurried over and sat down next to her.

"Naminé, what happened? You look distressed." She said, concern filling her words.

Naminé looked up with somber eyes. "What do you know about Organization XIII?"

Kairi was taken aback. "Naminé, what is this about?"

Naminé sighed and closed her eyes briefly. "When I was walking home from your house last night, I saw a bunch of guys with black coats on in an alleyway. One of them had a knife. I didn't know what to do. I couldn't move, Kairi."

Kairi sucked in an anxious breath and grasped her friend's shoulder. "What happened, Naminé?"

Naminé's palms were sweating just thinking about the previous night. "I started running when I heard their footsteps behind me. Then," Naminé exhaled and inhaled very quickly. "Someone pulled me out of the street, away from their sight. But when I looked up at who saved me it was…another Organization member."

Kairi pulled back and put a hand over her mouth with a gasp. "What? Naminé, do you know how much danger you could have been in? What happened next?"

Naminé knew that her friend's reaction partly was because she was addicted to soap operas, but she also knew that her friend cared for her deeply. "He told me-he told me not to tell anyone that he had saved me."

Kairi turned away and looked out across the courtyard. After a few delayed moments later she looked back at Naminé. "Are you going to tell the police?"

"No!" Naminé covered her mouth as quickly as the word burst out from her lips. "No, I don't know what I'm going to do. It's no use telling the authorities anyway since they can't pin down the Organization for bigger crimes."

Kairi slowly nodded and her eyes grew distant. "You have to be careful from now on, all right Naminé? Oh, you shouldn't be walking home alone at night, especially in the city. Ven was right that night."

Naminé suddenly began searching the grounds for her friend, but could not find him. She couldn't help wanting to talk to him. She didn't know why but she almost had an urge to seek comfort in him. He was the one who had told her that walking alone at night in the city was dangerous. What would he say?

That evening Naminé sat on her bed staring at her cell phone. Ven had given her his number "just for emergencies". Was now considered an emergency? Would he even want to know what had happened? He was just a friend after all, right?

With a long groan, Naminé fell back onto her blankets and covered her azure eyes with her arms. After meeting Ven at Lea's party that night, her life had gotten so much more complicated. Naminé moved her hands down over her heart and wondered: how did she really feel about Ven? He was a nice guy, charming, mysterious… Naminé's eyes snapped open. What _did_ he do in the city at night? She knew he had excellent grades but shouldn't he be home studying?

The next day, Friday, Naminé did see Ven. She felt reluctant to draw him away from his friends considering they seemed to be having a good time, but she had to. He was the only one who could be serious with her about it. Naminé was surprised when she saw that his face instantly turned sober when he looked at her. Normally his face would break into a smile and he would casually wave off his friends. Today though, his mouth drooped into a neutral yet negative position and his eyes darkened.

"What's up?" He didn't even try to hide his distress. His voice was heavier and Naminé closed her eyes, blaming herself.

"I-uh, I just wanted to talk to you," she said quietly. "Something happened the other night, and I thought maybe you would understand more than other people."

Ven rubbed his temple. "Why would you think that?"

Naminé tried not to back away at his moodiness. "I know you spend a lot of time in the city. At night, you said."

Ven considered her words carefully. He didn't nod, but continued to stare at her. She took that as a way to continue.

"I came across some Organization members. They saw me, but one of them saved me. I-I know this is not major but I was just wondering-"

Ven interrupted her mid-sentence. "You were alone?" He didn't even wait for Naminé to respond. "You should not go out into the city alone at night. It's too dangerous." He said sternly.

Naminé sighed. "That's what Kairi told me. I just thought-"

Ven messed up his hair in distress. Why was he getting so worked up over this, she wondered. Just as Naminé was about to touch his forearm to relax him, Ven pushed her away.

"What do you want me to tell you then? I can't really do anything about it, Naminé."

Ven's voice was steadily growing louder and a few people were beginning to glance their way. Suddenly Lea came over and put a firm hand on Ven's shoulder. His mouth came down and whispered something quickly in Ven's ear, which made the blonde tense up but he also relaxed in a way.

Lea turned his attention to Naminé and put on a small smile. "I'm sorry about him. He gets moody, as you might have noticed." Lea was about to say something else but Ven grasped the redhead between the shoulder and collarbone and stopped him.

"I'm sorry, Naminé." He said briefly without looking at her.

"It's fine." Lea slowly led Ven away and left Naminé confused and feeling alone once more. She had seen a completely different side of Ven that day, one that changed her perspective on her new friend.

"Naminé, I'm really not comfortable with you leaving alone again. Please, if you will just stay the night. I'm sorry that I can't walk you home since I have curfew but-"

Naminé waved Kairi's plea off and continued her way out the door. "I-I'll be fine. I'll call you when I get home, all right?" Kairi slowly nodded, nervousness in her eyes as she watched her blonde friend go.

Naminé began breathing quicker as she made her way out of the city to go home. She began counting every one of her footsteps as a way of relaxation. The city was unnerving at night, she thought and her pace quickened. Naminé turned the corner, counting now 71 footsteps when a hand snatched her around the waist and she was pulled back into a narrow alley. A second hand covered her mouth, muffling her protests and squeals. The arm around her midsection was tight like iron, paralyzing her completely. Naminé's legs went stiff and as she found herself being helplessly carried off like a doll.

"Organization XIII," she said quietly, sure of whom her kidnapper was. There a few low chuckles that sounded more like grumbles, worrying her. She felt the duct tape that bound her to the chair she was sitting in. She briefly wondered why they had not taped her mouth shut, although they had covered her eyes with a dark cloth.

"She's right there, she is." said a snide voice. There were some murmurs of agreement before a cold, threatening voice silenced them.

"Quiet. Now, you're probably wondering why you're here, Naminé Kumiko." said the voice. His voice echoed into the stillness. She could hear no movement.

"Why do you have me? There are plenty of other richer kids at my school. Why me?" Naminé couldn't help but lament. There were a few more whispers and even a snicker.

"Well that may be, but we have certain interest in your father." Naminé stilled as goosebumps ran up her arms.

"What do you want with him?" she whispered.

The powerful voice was icy. "He's knows a little too much about us, the Organization, and he will pay."

"No!" Naminé cried out but no one could hear her that could help her.

"Meanwhile," The voice came closer to her and she could soon feel his breath on her face. "We need to get a few things out of you, Miss Kumiko."

Naminé couldn't help but whimper at his closeness. "What do you want?"

The man did not answer for a long moment before he said something that did not make sense to her. "XI! Take care of her, but do _not_ go too far. We'll see how much the girl can take."

Naminé heard the sound of footsteps leaving the room and the sound of a metal door being shut. The slithering sound of a knife being unsheathed touched Naminé's ears, making her bite her lip. Then a cruel woman's voice breathed into her ear.

"How about we play a little game, girly."

In the next few hours, no one was there to hear her screams.

Naminé did not know how much time had passed, but she had been visited by numerous different members of the Organization, all of them trying to get information out of her. They asked her about her father's research. They asked her about what he knew about the Organization. But Naminé did not know much of what they were asking her, which frustrated them. She did not know what her father had been researching. He was a medical doctor and had been working on confidential things, things that even he did not disclose to her.

Naminé was bruised, both mentally and physically. She had received numerous cuts and would have many scars to prove what she had gone through. When the torturing ended, she was left alone when she cried profusely and whimpered to herself. Tears had marked her cheeks and beneath the blindfold her eyes were ringed with red and puffy.

Finally after it seemed like days of torture, the now familiar squeal of the door came to Naminé, chilling her entire body. No more, she thought desperately.

"I don't know anything!" she cried out, but she was sure that they wouldn't listen. Two members walked in since she could hear the unevenness of the footsteps. They were talking quietly among themselves and Naminé strained to hear what they were saying.

"-Screw this up or your father will pay. And you know what we do to those who go against the Organization. Do your orders as commanded, XIII." It the voice who had told her that they wanted her father, Naminé identified. One set of footsteps grew distant, leaving the room. She heard the bolt of the door. Locked. She had heard that sound too many times.

The footsteps that approached her were slow and even. Naminé felt her body begin to shake before he even reached her. Then she felt his breath on her neck. He breathed against her body for several seconds as if he was going to say something. Naminé flinched at the sound of a knife being pulled out. To her surprise the duct tape that held her against her chair was sliced off from around her upper arms and her calves. For a split second, Naminé thought that maybe this was the guy who had saved her. That he was going to be merciful. Then the man's voice drew her back to reality. _Do your orders as commanded_.

The man's hands grabbed her just below the shoulders and squeezed her. His grip was tight and ungentle as if to make sure she wouldn't run away. But Naminé knew the door was locked. She wouldn't even have a chance. She heard the sound of gloves being pulled off, something the other members hadn't done, making her hair stand on end.

Naminé felt the cold touch of his fingers on her cheek, almost caressing the soft skin. What was he going to do? Her lips quivered as his breath came closer. Then he did the unexpected.

"I'm sorry about this," he said in as gentle tone as possible for the situation. Naminé shivered. Then she felt his hands move down her body. They touched her body, feeling the light dress that covered her bare flesh. His breaths grew quicker. Then in one quick motion, he began tearing at her dress, searching for the milky white skin that lay beneath.

His hands grabbed at her body and pulled her off her chair. He quickly pinned her against the ground. Her dress slithered up her legs and he began pressing his whole weight onto her. Naminé began screaming, but it only echoed in the empty room. Then she started crying, harder than before. And no one could hear her.


	4. Chapter 4

Naminé was broken. It seemed like ages until another member came to get her. After her encounter with XII, she had been tied back to her chair. She sat there, crying after that as her blood slowly dripped onto the floor from her cuts.

Naminé was woken from her state of exhaustion when a pair of rough hands attached to strong arms tore off her binds and pulled her from the chair. Her eyes opened blearily only to see the blackness of her blindfold. Her ears caught the sound of the door creaking open and several pairs of footsteps entering the room.

"Careful, Number III, we don't want to harm our hostage." Naminé recognized the powerful voice. She felt the hands that held her upper arms loosen their iron grip.

She heard footsteps approach her until she felt his breath against her face. "In punishment for not giving us answers, you have just condemned your father to a quicker death than we had originally planned."

Naminé parted her lips as they quivered. Her throat was dry from all her screaming. "W-why are you telling me what you're planning?" she dared ask.

There was a low chuckle. "It doesn't matter what we tell you because there's nothing you can do to stop us."

Naminé's breath caught and she began to shake. _Her father was going to die._

"W-what about me? What's going to happen me?" Naminé's voice was now a hoarse whisper.

There was a pause. No answer. Then she felt herself being shoved forward and a hand grabbed her around the forearm.

"We'll spare you. You've paid your price, but your father is next and you can't stop us."

Her eyes burnt and her tears liquefied the dried blood smeared on her cheeks. Naminé barely felt as she was dragged away as her tears blurred her vision. She wanted them to kill her. She was no longer whom she had been and she couldn't go back. She did not even know who was anymore. Why did it all have to happen to her?

The next thing she knew her blindfold was ripped from her eyes. Her flaxen hair instantly blew into her face. Her sea blue eyes fluttered open, drying from the cool wind that was blowing at her. They were on a rooftop, high above the town. A pair of hands was placed upon her shoulders, turning her to her right.

In the distance she saw a tall man facing her. She pushed her hair from her eyes. Her father. It was her father. Naminé wanted to scream at him and run but her throat was too raw for her to even utter a croak. Suddenly, the pair of hands on her pulled her back against a tall, solid body. The right hand lifted from her shoulder. Briefly she heard a click before a gun entered her peripheral vision.

"Where's the money?" Naminé could feel the growl of her captor rumble through his chest.

Her eyes widened as she saw her father hold up a dark bag so they could see it before he tossed it into the air. Naminé watched it arc through the air until a second pair of gloved hands caught it. Naminé cocked her neck and saw out of the corner of her eye the tall and thin hooded figure beside them. The Organization member quickly peeked inside.

"That's it. Let her go, III." he said.

Naminé was shoved at her father in response, who caught her in her arms, holding her protectively. His hands shook but he leaned down and kissed her forehead, whispering, "It's all right. You're safe now."

"Let's go." said the figure with the ransom money. He began retreating as well as the other member who slowly backed away with the gun still directed at them. Naminé felt shivers run over her, but it may have also been from the exposed skin that was revealed from beneath her tattered dress.

When they were gone, Naminé clung to her father and wept. She heard him crying too, both knowing his impending fate.

Naminé returned to school that following Monday, four days after the Organization released her once she had been discharged from the hospital. Although Naminé never considered herself beautiful, her graceful features were now marred from the injuries she had received while she had been held hostage. She had ten stitches put in for a cut on her forehead and she had a thin scar across her left cheek that the doctors kept assuring her would heal. Kairi looked at her with worried and questioning eyes, but Naminé didn't want to talk to anyone. She didn't tell her what had happened except that she had been tortured, but she had suspicious that her father knew exactly what had happened.

Strangely the first person Naminé wanted to see once she arrived at school again was Ven. She badly wanted to apologize to him for upsetting him, but to her surprise she only saw Lea and Dyme. Lea told her that he hadn't been at school since Wednesday. He shrugged at her, giving her strictly limited answers. And so Naminé found herself once more resorting to her secluded spot under her tree. Kairi let her have her space even though it hurt her to see Naminé all alone.

Naminé absentmindedly found herself drawing pictures of a familiar blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy whom she didn't make out until she was finished that she recognized as Ven. When she went home after school she thought about the pictures. They couldn't replace the real Ven. Just thinking about them made her heart ache, which she found strange. She didn't know what it meant which unnerved her.

During the day Ven stayed on her thoughts, but at night the black-coated Organization member called XIII plagued her dreams. The words he had spoken to her echoed hauntingly in her mind: "_I'm sorry." _It vaguely reminded her of the Organization member who had rescued her on her way home from Kairi's. Could they possibly be the same person?

Finally on Wednesday Naminé saw Ven, who was trudging along by himself. It was the first time she had seen him without Lea and Dyme anywhere in sight. She barely restrained herself from rushing over to him once she had caught sight of him. When Ven looked up as she heard him, she noticed the dark circles under his shadowy eyes, which seemed glazed over and hungry like black holes.

"Naminé." he said slowly.

Naminé's shoulders drooped at the tired tone of his voice. "Ven, I…I just really wanted to apologize for upsetting you last time I saw you." she said carefully.

Ven looked straight into her eyes as if he was peering into her soul. He looked down at his feet at her statement. "How are you?" he said quietly. "I heard that you had a rough tiem…you know."

Naminé grasped his arm. "Ven, are you all right? You seem not yourself."

"I just haven't been feeling well this past week," he said in a low voice. He suddenly looked up at her, something sparking in his eyes. "I should be the one apologizing. I'm sorry I snapped at you and treated you like dirt. I definitely wasn't myself then." he said with an urgent tone in his voice.

Naminé clasped her hands together. "I understand."

Ven sighed deeply, making Naminé curious when Lea's voice called across the courtyard. "Ven! _Ven_!"

Ven didn't move but slightly stiffened. Dyme suddenly appeared behind him and began dragging him back towards the school, muttering some things into his ear.

"How are you, Naminé?" Lea's voice startled Naminé. She turned around quickly to see the redhead standing right behind her.

Naminé adjusted a few stray hairs. "Um, I'm fine. I'm feeling better now."

Lea gave her a small smile. "That's good," He glanced off to the direction where Dyme had taken Ven. "You should be careful around him, especially now, Naminé." he said, looking at her sternly.

"Why?" asked Naminé, surprised at his statement. "Is there something wrong with him?"

Lea rolled his eyes upward. "That's an understatement. He's been neglecting his medicine recently. He also quit his classes at the college."

Naminé placed a hand over her mouth. "He did seem a bit strange."

Lea nodded. "He's a lot more uptight when he doesn't take his medicine. I think he also…" Lea trailed off, making Naminé wonder.

"What?" Lea shook his head and looked down on her.

"Nothing. I said nothing, got it memorized?"

All Naminé could do was nod before he to left her.


	5. Chapter 5

Soo...sorry if it seems like forever ago that I updated, which it really hasn't, but unfortunately I thought I had already posted this chapter...heheh silly me. This is kind of a snoozer but get ready for the next chapter which is a LOT better.

Oh, so I haven't done this in a while, so..

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN KINGDOM HEARTS OR ANY SQUARE ENIX PRODUCTS

* * *

><p>Naminé didn't mind the fact that she saw Ven at school all five days of the school week, but she reluctantly had to adjust to the new attitude he gave her. Between her and Lea, she noticed how nonchalantly he was about Ven's behavior while she couldn't help but worry over him.<p>

It was a Friday, two weeks after she had returned to school. Naminé sighed, breathing in the cool breeze through her nose as she brushed aside a few stray hairs. It was a chilly day for Twilight Town and yet she still sat beneath her tree with her sketchpad laid upon her lap even though most of the other students remained indoors.

Kairi hardly talked to her anymore since she hadn't disclosed any more information of her capture. Naminé didn't mean to give her the cold shoulder, but at the moment she just didn't want to talk to her. She stubbornly wanted to talk to Ven and she still didn't know why. After spending numerous nights trying to self-diagnose herself she had come up empty, frustrating her even more. She supposed that she could have come up with a solution if she had confided with Kairi, but she remained quietly frustrated.

Never had she been under such stress socially. Naminé put her hands around her forearms and looked around. No one was about. She was alone, yet she felt like she was being watched. A sudden gust of wind blew from behind her, making goosebumps scale her exposed flesh. The pages of her sketchbook blew up, sending them fluttering from their anchor along the spine. Naminé looked down at the pages with downcast eyes.

There he was, again and again and again; his face, his deep blue eyes, his spiky blonde hair. Naminé shut her eyes, trying to erase his image from her mind, but it was if he was from a reoccurring dream. So she kept drawing him and she couldn't stop herself, as if she was under a trance.

"Aren't you cold out here?"

Naminé pushed the hairs that had returned to her face out of her eyes as she opened them. Hesitantly, she looked over her shoulder as a coat was draped over her bare shoulders. Her azure eyes met a matching pair as a smile tweaked at the corner of his lips.

"You didn't answer my question."

Naminé, suddenly aware of Ven's presence quickly closed her sketchpad just as a faint shade of red began to spread across her cheeks.

"No, I-I'm really just fine." Naminé couldn't help but stutter from the cold temperature.

Ven chuckled, making Naminé blush harder. He leaned closer to her so that his breath warmed her skin.

"I think you're lying," he whispered. Naminé subconsciously felt herself leaning into him. She barely suppressed a shiver as she felt his finger glide across the skin of her upper arm. "Your skin is so cold."

Naminé couldn't stop her eyes from fluttering closed for a moment.

"Why…why are you talking to me now?" she murmured. She felt like he was hypnotizing her with the tenderness of his voice and touch. What was this spell he was putting her under?

There was no chuckle from Ven. His finger was removed from her skin and she missed his touch.

"Didn't we say we would be friends?" Ven's tone was harder now, more defensive.

Naminé tucked her chin down to her chest. "You acted like we weren't quite friends the last few times we talked."

"I'm sorry. I've been…complicated." Naminé heard the rustle of his hairs as he scratched his head.

"How have you been complicated?" Naminé asked cautiously.

Ven's eyes almost instantly iced over. He hesitated before he responded. "I don't feel comfortable talking about it." He said his words slowly, emphasizing each of them.

Naminé looked at him intensely. "You just said we were friends."

Ven's eyes narrowed. "What does that mean?"

Naminé grasped the edge of the bench tightly. "Friends tell each other what's troubling them."

"As if you've been venting to Kairi these past couple weeks," Ven's face was beginning to contort as his anger began to build. He glared at her. "But that's not me. I'm not like that so don't tell me what I should and shouldn't do."

Ven's chest heaved and the vein in his temple was bulging in his forehead. Naminé scooted away from him. Why did she ever decide to trust him that night? Why had she agreed to befriend him? Was this what had been hiding under the mask the whole time?

Then Naminé noticed something. Hidden deep in Ven's eyes Naminé saw a buried emotion that was covered up by the darkness he portrayed. She didn't know what the emotion was, but the steel that he put up for all to see wavered ever so slightly before his shield instantly slammed back up.

Ven seemed to sense her discover and quickly rose. Before he walked away he said, "Your picture are…stunningly realistic."

Naminé turned to look at him but he was already walking away. She couldn't understand how one moment he could be so kind hearted and another nearly heartless. The wind blew again ominously. Naminé pulled the coat he had placed over her shoulders closer around her. Naminé glanced down at the coat he had left with her. It was black. Her spine tingled. She felt as if she was being sucked into a dark poll that she could not back out from.

With her disagreement with Ven and her isolation from Kairi, Naminé had no one to walk her home. The thoughts of being attacked or even kidnapped no longer fazed her since she had already gone through it. Caught up in her spiraling thoughts, Naminé hardly registered the sound of her cell phone ringing. By the third ring Naminé began rummaging through her bag to retrieve it.

"Hello? Dad?" Naminé immediately recognized her father's deep voice.

"Naminé, are you on your way home?" He asked her.

Naminé nodded, looking down to her feet. "Yes, I just left school."

Her father hesitated before he continued. "Could you pick up a packet from a colleague of mine? I'll give you the address. It's just…I don't want to go into the city after-"

"Yes, I'll pick it up for you, Dad." Naminé said quickly.

She heard him sigh. After writing down the address, Naminé hung up and turned her way towards town. She was scared how bad things were getting. Even her father couldn't go out in risk of being hunted down by the Organization.

The office she had to pick up the packet was nestled among many towering buildings where alleyways twisted and wound themselves between them. Naminé tried not to look down them as she got an uneasy feeling in her stomach when she did. Once she had relieved the packet, Naminé hurried back home, eager to return to her father. Even during the day she did not like to leave him at home alone.

Her footsteps quickened and she kept wishing that the number of alleyways would cease. A distinguished scuffle in one made her halt. After consideration, Naminé carefully peered down the alley. She saw a lone figure hunched over to the left about ten feet from her. Her breath hitched when she recognized the spiked blonde hair of the figure as he raised his head into a pale beam of light.

"Ven?" Naminé's voice was just over a whisper in disbelief.

The head rose and his pair of blue eyes caught in the light although they were darkened by the shadows beneath his eyes. His shoulders were slumped down in defeat and she noticed something in his hand.

"Ven?" Naminé stepped forward, slowly approaching him. No response. She now quickened her pace until she was before him. She grabbed his wrist. "Ven, what is that?"

His eyes lifted and stared right at her, making her gasp. His eyes were dull and were red shaded with grey under them. His mouth hung slightly open, his breaths heavy. Ven roughly threw the item away and it hit the opposite wall with a hollow thud. Naminé recognized the sound of it as a plastic bottle, like a pill bottle.

"Ven, what was that?" Naminé tightened her grasp on his wrist, begging him for an answer.

Ven groaned, slumping against the nearest wall, his hand reaching towards his collarbones to his throat.

"Ven!" Naminé now grabbed his shoulders, trying to hold him up. Ven's eyes rolled upward before they slid shut. As he fell back against the wall, Naminé rushed to retrieve the bottle he had discarded. Picking it up and rolling it in her hand, Naminé read the label.

"Three maximum a month for over-exertion or pain…" She checked the issue date. It had been issued two weeks before and it was completely empty.

"Oh my god," Naminé gasped. She ran back over to Ven, dropping the bottle. "Ven, Ven! Are you all right?" Naminé shook him but received no response. Was this the medicine Lea had mentioned to her? No, it couldn't be. He had told her Ven had not been taking it…

Wait, her father worked for a pharmaceutical company. Maybe he would know what the drug Ven had consumed was. Hastily, Naminé dug out her cellphone, hitting speed dial.

"Dad, Dad! I…I need you. It's an emergency."


	6. Chapter 6

AN: I'm sorry that this is such a such chapter, but it's really dramatic and I hope that the content will make up for the lack of words. Here's a warning, but after this chapter I'm sad to admit but I'm going to wrap it all up so the following chapters will probably seem kinda lame. Sorry...again. I'm working towards 10 chapters to round it all out, but please review because at the moment I'm not really satisfied with what I've got at the end. So PLEASE REVIEW! I love constructive criticism and whatever you guys really like!

* * *

><p>"This is the boy who walked you home that night?" Ansem asked his daughter as he walked into the room where she sat patiently beside the bed where Ven lay.<p>

"Yes." She replied quietly.

Ansem stood next to her, looking at the boy's still figure. "He looks like a nice boy, one you wouldn't predict to overdose. Of course, you never can tell." He sighed.

Naminé shook her head. "That's what I don't understand. Why would he do this?" Her voice was pained and worried.

Ansem picked up the bottle that sat on the bedside table. "Question is: where did he get this?" He glanced at Naminé. "Unless… Naminé, have you ever seen him dealing drugs?"

Naminé instantly looked up. "No! Never."

Ansem thought to himself. "With the kind of drugs that were in the medication he should only be unconscious for a little while. It's not as bad as it could be," Ansem was about to leave but then he looked at his daughter. "Do you know of anyone we can call for him?"

Naminé shook her head. "I'll look for his phone."

Ansem nodded before he left the room, quietly shutting the door behind him. Naminé moved closer to Ven and reached to his coat pockets. She found his phone and was surprised by how few contacts he had in it. There were no contacts with labels relating to parents of any sort. It was strange, making her wonder. If Ven didn't have any parents, then who was his family? In the end, Naminé ended up calling Lea.

"Yo." Lea answered.

Naminé felt her hand begin to shake. "Lea? It's Naminé." She said nervously.

There was a loud crackling sound from Lea's side. "Why do you have Ven's phone?" he asked, his tone cold Naminé was slightly frightened from his intimidating voice, but she willed herself to answer.

Naminé inhaled deeply. "Lea, I found Ven in an alley. He passed out, so I brought him to my house. I think he overdosed on something because he had a pill bottle with him. My father's trying to figure out what was in it."

Lea fell silent. She couldn't even hear his breathing. It seemed like ages before he finally responded. "Look, just…just keep him at your place until he wakes up. Call me as soon as he is conscious, OK?" Lea's voice sounded worried. Naminé found herself nodding.

"All right." Lea hung up and Naminé closed the phone before she set it on the bedside table, gazing down at Ven's peaceful expression. She sighed.

"Why do you keep so many secrets, Ven?" she whispered. Even as she reached over and brushed her fingers lightly over his brow he did not stir. She was so confused. It seemed so strange how, ever since she had met Ven, her life had begun spiraling out of control.

Finally, she rose but before she left the room, she gave him one last look before she shut the door.

Just before she went to bed, Naminé checked on Ven. She slowly approached his bedside, treading quietly so not to disturb him. Her heart pounded; how long was he going to be out? During the few times she had visited him throughout the day he had not moved.

She stood watching him for several minutes, observing the slow and steady rises and falls of his chest beneath the white blankets. Naminé found herself leaning down to brush a couple of his unruly spikes off his forehead when Ven's blue eyes snapped open. Naminé froze. Blue met blue as they stared at each other for a few prolonged seconds. Ven's breaths grew quicker as his eyes looked her over, not once glancing around at his surroundings.

Naminé watched as Ven's left hand snuck up and touched the back of her neck, bringing her closer to him. She could feel his hot breaths along her neck, making her shudder. Her hair cascaded over her shoulders, falling like a curtain around the two of them. Ven's eyes gazed into hers, watching their every movement. Naminé was completely locked in the trance he put her in and it wasn't broken until she felt Ven's lips lightly touch hers.

She did not know how long their kiss lasted, but her eyes were wide and wondering as they parted. Ven simply stared at her. Strangely, Naminé felt herself leaning further into him, pressing her lips against his. Ven almost immediately responded, licking her lips, pressuring his tongue against them. Naminé couldn't help but gasp for air when Ven's tongue gained entrance. Ven's arms snaked around her waist, pulling her into him. His hands made their way up her back as she was almost on top of him. Their kiss was slow and passionate and when they drew back Ven's hand moved to her forehead, brushing her loose hair back.

Then Naminé pulled back, her fingers coming to her lips as she realized what had just happened. At first Ven thought he had been dreaming, but now he knew he was definitely awake. A cocky smile spread over his lips; the kiss was certainly an exciting wake up call. But just as suddenly as the smile came on it vanished, leaving Naminé confused. The smile was instantly replaced with a grimace. Ven squeezed his eyes shut in contemplation.

"Damnit," he murmured. Naminé looked at him. Ven opened his eyes, meeting her puzzled gaze. "I'm sorry."

Naminé furrowed her brow. Something was out of place. Suddenly something sparked in her mind. It grew and grew in a swirl of messed up, darkened thoughts until it completely overwhelmed her.

"Oh…oh my god," Naminé immediately slid off the bed and stumbled back until her back met the wall, her hand covering her mouth. "Oh my god…"

Ven lifted himself up on his forearms. "Naminé, what's wrong?" His voice was velvety and deep, but it did the opposite of seducing her.

His hand was outstretched, reaching for her, but Naminé backed away as far as she could go until she was against the door. Her eyes were wide, her face horrified and fearful.

"Don't touch me." She said gravely, her words shaking like her body was. She looked like such a scared little girl. Ven's eyes narrowed. What did he do that could make her look like that?

Then it hit him. Ven's eyes widened and he cursed. "Shit. Naminé-" But she had already escaped from the room. He slammed his fist into the pillow before he threw it against the door.

Naminé ran back to her bedroom, shutting the door and locking it behind her. She collapsed with the door at her back before she slid down to the floor as tears began streaming down her face. The person she had trusted the most in her time of need had betrayed her the whole time. Bile began rising in her throat. Naminé was devastated and mostly horrified. She put her hand over her mouth, wanting to scream and throw up.

Was there no one she could trust?

* * *

><p>So how was it? Did it surprise you? Satisfy your desires? Please review and tell me what you think! :D<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

Yes! I have actually managed to trick all but one of you guys (ok, based on the reviews) - I feel so accomplished! I have to admit that I was sad that not so many of you all did not get the bait that I set out, but it still makes me feel happy that I will surprise you. Ah, so this is where EVERYTHING COMES OUT! (well, so there will be some more in the last few chapters, but here's what you've been waiting for). This is a longer chapter than the last few, so I hope it satisfies your needs.

PS: For you reviewers wondering why it says VenXNamine on here, you'll get that answered too. :)

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, Harry Potter, or any other references you may come across in this chapter :D<p>

* * *

><p>The first thing Naminé did the next morning was call Lea strictly to tell him that Lea was conscious. Before he could respond she hung up in case the tears began again. Then she grabbed her coat and left the house as fast as she could.<p>

She couldn't be near him. Not after what he had done to her. He had stolen the most precious things she could offer. Naminé began to run even though she didn't know where she was headed. Her breath caught in her throat and tears began to sting in her eyes even though she tried to hold them back.

Naminé finally stopped at the plaza overlooking the sparkling ocean, her breaths heavy and pained. She found herself spilling more tears, though not as hard as the previous night's, they poured from the very core of her soul, staining her cheeks. Naminé lurched slightly over the edge of the railing at the sight of the bright ocean. It was so beautiful, more beautiful than she could ever be.

Ven had left so many marks on her; her body, her mind, everywhere. Naminé couldn't even open her sketchpad without seeing his face over and over and over again. After their kiss the previous night, Naminé briefly realized what had come over her and it just made her cry even more: she had fallen in love with him. Maybe once briefly she had fantasized about her first kiss with Ven, but not like this. This was so much worse than she had imagined. Somehow she had fallen into his trap and the more she got involved with him the harder it was for her to get out.

Naminé closed her eyes. How ironic, she thought, that being around Ven seemed to pass on strife. He sure did live up to his last name.

"Naminé? Are you all right?" Naminé recognized the masculine voice and dipped her head down, shaking it. She felt his hand softly on her shoulder.

"Go away, Sora." She protested, but her sobs broke through her words, making her shoulder shake.

Sora put his fingers under her chin, lifting it up so she looked directly into his eyes. "What happened? I haven't even seen you so…broken."

Naminé recoiled from his intimate touch, wrapping her arms protectively around herself. "You…you wouldn't understand." As soon as the words left her lips Naminé regretted them. She bit her lip. Of all people, Sora would understand her. Naminé lowered her gaze, trying to avoid his gaze.

Sora crossed his arms stubbornly. "Then tell me why I wouldn't understand."

Naminé closed her eyes. "It's complicated."

Sora sighed, scratching the back of his neck, making his brown spikes even messier. "Does this have anything to do with Ven?" He saw how Naminé immediately looked up at his name. "I know you've been in love with him for a while now." He said to her.

"B-But how? Even I didn't know until just…now," stuttered Naminé, confused.

Sora shrugged. "Love's funny that way. We are always the last ones to realize we're in love while everyone else can see it as clear as day." Naminé sniffed, lamost as a sarcastic laugh.

"Sora, why don't you like Ven? Naminé knew her question was blunt and honestly she didn't think that Sora would answer her. He looked away over the sea before he responded to her question, to her surprise.

Sora cupped his hand around the back of his neck. "I've just never liked him, ever since freshman year. I saw him and his friends with their Organization coats on doing crack. I just didn't trust him from then on." His voice was quiet and barely audible, and Naminé had a feeling he was nearly talking to himself.

Sora abruptly looked back at the blonde, confirming her suspicions, knowing he had said too much. He was surprised at the lack of emotion Naminé held on her face.

Sora tiled his head to look at Naminé with wide eyes. "You don't seem fazed at all. Did you know that already?" Sora's voice was incredulous.

Sora was shocked when Naminé nodded. "I just found out," Naminé sniffed, refusing to wipe away her tears. "I just can't believe that he was part of the Organization. He…"

Sora rolled his head to the right. "Ven is an interesting guy," Sora then noticed how Naminé looked down at her hands, which were fidgeting nervously. He frowned. "Naminé, there's something that you're not telling me. Does this have anything to do with when the Organization captured you?"

Naminé sucked in a breath nervously. She tried to respond, but her throat was completely dry. After a couple tries she finally was able to form the words. "There's something that I haven't told anyone, not even Kairi," Naminé felt ashamed that she hadn't even told her best friend. She looked up to see Sora watching her, intently listening. "They did the most horrible things to me to try to get me to tell them about my father's research."

Naminé stopped, her voice catching and a sob broke out from her. Sora grasped her shoulder gently. "It's all right. If you're not ready, you don't have to tell me."

But Naminé shook her head. "No, I have to tell someone. I've been hiding it way too long," Sora gave her a wondering look. "There was one time when one of the Organization members…he-" Naminé's tears made her eyes red. She desperately wanted to stop crying, but reliving the moment in her mind triggered them non-stop like a waterfall. "Raped me." Her voice rasped out and Sora gasped, his eyes widening.

Naminé bent over, grasping her sides, her hand covering her mouth. Sora let her cry out her tears before he dared to speak again. "Naminé, what does this have to do with Ven?"

Naminé shook her head, making her hair stick to the tears that covered her face. Sora's mind whirled before he answered his own question. He let out a growl.

"He raped you?" His eyes then narrowed and his hands squeezed into fists. "I'll kill that bastard," Sora then turned his sharpened gaze on Naminé, making it immediately soften. "Wait, how do you know it was him?"

Naminé tightened her fingers around herself. "Ven…it's a long story, but last night he…kissed me. Then he said something, the same thing he had told me before he…" She couldn't bring herself to say it again.

Sora touched her arm. "Naminé, what did he say?" His tone was cold but attentive.

Naminé searched the brunette's bright blue eyes. "'I'm sorry'. That's what he said, the exact same way." His voice both times had sounded burdened and genuine, but it just didn't make sense at all.

Sora shifted his weight. "Why-"

Naminé shrugged her shoulders in a defeated way making them go limp. "I don't know, Sora."

Sora didn't speak for a long time. He hesitated before he finally spoke. "Naminé, maybe I was wrong to judge Ven by what I saw that day. Maybe he is a good guy who just made some bad decisions."

Naminé's head rose. She had not expected his answer. Sora was…strange. Despite his lack of brightness at times, he was wiser than he looked. Naminé watched him carefully. He truly was a sincere guy and he was really bad at being angry with someone, even Ven.

He meant good and was so open-minded. Then she shook her head.

"I don't think I'll be able to look him in the eye and be able to talk to him again."

Sora gazed at her sadly. "If you're going to give up on him, then at least talk to him one more time. It's not fair if a friendship ends without closure even if he did hurt you."

Naminé looked out to the sea. It seemed so beautiful and free. She wished sbe could be like that, but now she just felt like she had a ball and chain tethered to her leg.

She sighed. "Maybe you're right," she murmured. She could be free and escape if she simply closed it off with Ven. It hurt her heart just thinking about it, but she knew it was the only way.

Ven woke with Naminé imprinted in his mind, but when he opened his eyes she was gone. He gazed about the unfamiliar room where he was. Everything was white; the walls, the curtains, the furnishings, everything. There was no sign of her, no hint that she had been there at all, yet it felt like she was everything. It was her color.

Then it all rushed back to him. He was in her house. Ven covered his face with his hands. What had he done? It was all so screwed up. Ven's body began convulsing. He wanted to throw up.

He couldn't do it, not this time. Ven clutched his head as the scene replayed in his mind.

"_I realize you have fulfilled your punishment, XIII with the girl. However you and I both know that you still have not completely a more proper punishment. I think it would be appropriate if you took it upon to complete the mission we have discussed." _

_He could see his grin behind the darkness of his hood. It sickened him. _

"_Haven't we paid enough? Why do you punish me for my father?" he pleaded. _

_The man laughed menacingly. "If you would prefer I could assign another member to do the job and then kill your father instead. Number VIII would do it willingly, but I know how cleanly you perform on these missions." _

"_He screwed up, OK? Can't you just accept that?" he shouted. _

_The man grew silent and the atmosphere grew thick. "In the Organization we do not accept mistakes on any level, and we most certainly do not tolerate those who are _weak_. If you want out, then you will have to pay the exit fee with your life," The man placed a gripping hand on his shoulder. "This is your chance for redemption, XIII. You and your father's lives are on the line. Either seize it or you will have to pay the consequences." _

Ven shuddered at the memory. Why did he have to pay? He cursed his father for dragging him into the Organization since his birth. It wasn't fair. But he was still his father. Ven's forehead creased in frustration, trying to balance out the conflicting factors in his head.

Ven inhaled until his lungs felt like bursting. He had no choice. He had to do it, so he would just have to suck it up like last time.

Ven sat up, realizing he was still in his clothes. His hands fumbled inside his jacket at the hidden pocket that he kept his gun in. Just then the door opened and Ven pulled out his hand quickly as Ansem stepped in.

"I knew that you would be awake this morning," He said as he walked over to him. He carefully sat down at the end of the bed and gave him a scrutinizing look. "As soon as I saw you I instantly recognized you." He suddenly said.

Ven put up a blank face. "Excuse me, sir?"

Ansem's eyes narrowed. "You know what I'm talking about. You two used to be the closest of friends. But I believe back then you had a different name, am I correct?"

Ven was cornered and his eyes widened, and he grew tense. "You know, it's hard to forget a little blonde boy with hair like yours." Ansem said gently.

Ven gulped, lowering his head. "I assumed she did not remember me."

Ansem solemnly shook his head. "You were right, she didn't. After her mother passed, Naminé was quite traumatized. I supposed she spent all her time desperately trying to remember her instead of the little boy she had known in Radiant Garden,"

Ansem leaned closer, putting a kind hand on Ven's. "Listen, we all make bad choices in life. When I saw you, I knew you were the same nice boy from before. Of course you had grown up and changed; everybody does. But I also knew you meant her no harm," Ven met the man's lighter eyes. "She cares for you deeply. If she didn't then you wouldn't be here, I would guess. Do you care for her, Roxas?"

Ven distinctly noticed how he used his name from when he and Naminé had been childhood friends. He swallowed hard before answering. "I have always cared for Naminé," he said. His hands wrung together roughly. "I never meant to hurt her. I never…"

Ansem moved his hand to the boy's shoulder. "I know. I know you didn't mean to."

Ansme rose and turned to exit the room when he heard the downstairs door open and voices. Ven's eyes widened for a second before he squeeze them shut. _Suck it up, Roxas._

"Don't…move." Ansem stopped in his tracks when he heard the boy's steely voice. He put his hands up when he heard the sound of a gun's guard clicking off. Slowly he pivoted around to face Ven who was standing with a gun aimed at his head with a dead-serious look frozen on his face.

Ansem watched the boy's, who was trying to keep his expression tight, void of the conflicting emotions lying just below the surface.

"You don't have to do this, son," said Ansem coolly. "You're just a boy. You don't deserve to murder." But Ven was shaking although eh kept an expert poker face.

"You think I don't deserve to murder? I've been trained for this since I was just a child. I've committed so many sins that I'm already in hell. You don't understand. No one does," Ven's voice was beginning to falter, but he tried to keep it low and serious. "I _have_ to do this." he proclaimed.

Ansem heard the sound of footsteps running up the stairs. Just as Naminé entered the room Ven moved the gun, so it was directed at her.

"Ven!" she gasped, she too raising her hands from her side.

"Don't move." He said through gritted teeth.

Just then Lea stepped out from behind Naminé. "Roxas…"

Ven restrained himself from biting his lip. The weary skin around his blue eyes tightened in concentration as the protruding vein in his temple beganto pulse.

"Don't try to stop me, Axel. You know I have to do this." Ven said, barely managing to keep his voice level.

"Why must you do this, son? You know you always have a choice." Ansem said carefully.

Ven's mouth curled into a snarl. "No, you _don't understand_. I don't have a fucking choice. I have to kill you because…because if I don't they'll kill my father," Tears were welling up in Ven's eyes but he ignored them. "They'll kill me too," Ven gasped for a breath. "I didn't want this. I never meant to hurt anyone, but they'll kill me if I try to leave."

Naminé clasped her hands over her mouth, her eyes watery and afraid.

"I could…" Ven shook his head. "You're right. I do have another choice." Ven shifted the gun so its tip was at his head.

"No!" screamed Naminé, wanting to run towards him, but her father held her back. She didn't know why she had reacted so, when he had hurt her so much. But so badly did she want to protect him. She didn't want him to die.

"I agree with the girl, man. I won't let you do that," There was another click before Lea had his own gun pointed at Ven, directed at his chest. "Kill shot, you know that. I taught you everything you know. Listen, if you kill him and I shoot you, you'll have accomplished your mission and your dad will be spared. Easy, huh? Plus, if you try to run out later on I'll have saved them the bullet," Lea was calm and a smirk tugged at the corner of his lips as Ven's gun rotated back to Ansem. "It's a better option than the second. I was placed as the alternate if you were not fit to complete the mission, and it looks that way. But then you would probably be killed if you came back having not completed the mission like you were supposed to. Anyways, if I kill you, I promise to make it a lot less painful than the Organization will."

"Lea, you can't kill him. He's your friend." Begged Naminé.

Lea glanced at the girl. "I know he is, but this is a matter of internal affairs within the Organization. Trust me, I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I killed him right here and now."

Naminé gazed at Ven, tears dropping onto her cheeks. "Ven, don't tell me you want to die now. Don't," Naminé choked on her tears and she moved her hands so they were placed over her heart. "I…I love you, Ven. Don't do this."

Something wavered deep in Ven's eyes. He opened his lips as if he was going to say something but nothing came out. He blinked before he finally spoke.

"Axel, I do actually mind if you killed me now," Ven looked longingly over to Naminé. "I love Naminé, I really do. It's just that…I've hurt her too much to go on. I can't take this anymore." He shut his eyes and inhaled deeply.

The sound of a gunshot rang through the house followed by Naminé's screams. Then all fell silent.

* * *

><p>Questions? Comments? Criticisms? (constructive please, part of me dies when I get actual criticism)<p>

I wanna hear from you, so review!


	8. Chapter 8

Hi all! So...this chapter is kinda lame compared to the last one. Haha, it was great with the cliffhanger that I put you on, I loved the reviews in reaction. xXxGothicButterflySpiritxXx, your review made my day. Thanks!

Anyways...I know this doesn't completely finish off the story, but I want your guys' opinion if you want another chapter. I have it all written and it's lame too, but if you want fluff and some overrated drama, then it's for you. It's pretty unrelated to the main of the story, but if you want another romantic moment between Roxas and Namine before the SUPER lame ending, then just say the word and I'll type it up and put it on.

So...here it is. Enjoy, review, all that stuff...

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, it's all owned by Square Enix.<p>

* * *

><p>Three days later the Organization fell. The newspapers were going crazy the following days. The cops were in a frenzy that one of the Organization's own had taken down their most valuable target. There was an ongoing debate whether or not to arrest the traitor since he was a trained assassin, and yet he had also wiped out the Organization from existence. Eventually he turned himself in, not at all stricken that he was held in jail while the cops decided what to do with him.<p>

Now there were only four Organization members left. One, who had come pleading to the police to arrest him just hours before the Organization fell; a second, the one who had destroyed the Organization and now resided at the station. The third escaped, presumably out of the country. The fourth they found was just a kid who was at the hospital for a gunshot wound inflicted to the right side of the chest, lodging against his ribs, skillfully placed there, missing his heart and only breaking a rib or two. They later discovered that the shooter they held at the station had shot the boy, adding another level of mystery to the case.

The cops couldn't believe how young three of the remaining members were, as they were still in high school. It didn't make sense to outsiders why the Organization would suddenly just turn itself inside out.

They found the youngest surviving member at the hospital to be frequented by a similarly aged girl who constantly sat at his beside. Most of the time the boy was asleep. The girl and the boy would not exchange words, which the cops found strange. When they finally came, they sent her from the room.

The boy was…interesting. He seemed constantly distracted yet seemingly by nothing. He said as little as possible, remaining completely aloof. He checked out though, as the tattoo XIII was labeled on his left forearm was proof enough.

After the cops left, Ven glanced out the door expectantly, but no one came back in. He groaned from his broken ribs as he leaned over to pick up his headphones from the bedside table. Then he fell back into the bed, gasping from the strain.

"Damn hospitals," he muttered. They made him think too much, staring up at the plain ceiling. His eyes glazed over as they roamed around the room. "It's just like her house." He moaned, pulling his fists over his eyes as they slid shut. Why couldn't he stop thinking about her?

Another week and a half had gone by and Naminé was back under her tree in the school's courtyard. It was warm today with hardly any breeze. Naminé was nearing the end of her sketchpad since she had not yet ceased to drawing Ven.

After the shooting, Naminé had remembered her argument with Ven:

"_Friends tell each other what's troubling them."_

"_As if you've been venting to Kairi these past couple weeks," _

And so she soon began talking with Kairi again. She hadn't realized how much she had missed her best friend. Naminé told her everything, including what had happened to her while she had been held captive. It felt good to tell someone absolutely everything after so long. Naminé felt it as a great release, as if she had unraveled a knot from her heart that had been growing tighter and tighter over time.

While Naminé had gained back the trust of Kairi, she also somehow felt lonely. With Lea in jail, Dyme being interrogated constantly by the cops and lawyers, and Ven, whom she hadn't seen since she left him at the hospital, Naminé felt as if the school was much more emptier without their presence. Naminé felt guilty about just leaving Ven there all alone, but after the cops had come to see him, she simply could not take it anymore. It was if they were the last straw. She felt she couldn't be around him any longer. He was a criminal after all, one of the members of the Organization. Naminé tried to resist shuddering as she thought that the threesome whom she had grown to feel friendly with were all criminals.

Naminé was absorbed in her monotonous routine of drawing Ven. She couldn't stop herself, even now. She swore that the repetitiveness was going to her head when she looked up and saw the spiky blonde hair and blue eyes walk right before her. Then she realized she wasn't hallucinating. It was _him_.

"Ven!" Instantly, Naminé felt her body being pulled up like a puppet. Her sketchpad fell to the ground although she didn't register it. She jumped up from the bench she sat on and hurried after him, trying to keep up with his longer, smooth strides. After calling his name several times to no avail, Naminé halted and said quietly, "Number XIII."

She didn't know what she was hoping to expect, but called something she knew he would react to. It was what she had heard him being called while she was captive…the _real_ him.

Ven stopped abruptly and turned his head so he could see her over his shoulder. "It's Roxas."

Something struck deep in her mind like déjà vu. "Roxas," she breathed. Naminé walked closer to him as he turned around to face her until she was less than a foot away from him. "I'm glad you're OK."

Roxas looked down at her, conflicting feelings flashing in his eyes.

Naminé shifted her gaze down to her hands, which were clasped together before her. "V-Roxas, were you serious when you said you loved me?"

Roxas avoided her gaze when she raised her head. Naminé bit her lip. "Then why did you…why would you...?"

Roxas bowed his head and said softly, "Because they were punishing me for a mistake my father made. I had to do it. That's why I apologized. I didn't know if you would hear, but I felt like I had to."

It was just as if he had a painted face, a phony front to cover up the monster beneath. Naminé sucked in shaky breath. Could she really love a monster?

Naminé pushed her loose hairs across her forehead, looking down as a blush began to creep upon her cheeks. "You cared for me even then?" Her voice was weak and hesitant.

Roxas leaned so close to her that she could feel his breath on her face. "I've loved you ever since we met." His voice hissed into her ear.

Naminé looked at him, confused. "At the party?"

Roxas had his hand up, cradling her head, as he smelled the sweet scent of his hair. "No. Don't you remember? It's me, Roxas."

Something washed over her, triggering memories to flood back into her. "You were that little boy…Roxas," Naminé was startled at the realization. "You didn't forget about me after all these years?"

Roxas chuckled. "I thought you were some kind of angel, even when I was four. Then when I moved over here, I saw you sitting under that tree. I couldn't believe my eyes. If I thought that you were an angel back then, then you were a goddess there," Naminé's eyes brightened as a long-lost smile began to spread over his face. "I had fallen in love with you all over again. So when I found you at Axel's party, I thought that I had finally hit a lucky break," Roxas's hands were on her shoulders, making her look right at him. "You made me change and get better. I started taking my medication again. Axel was even suspicious. He thought that I was going crazy."

Naminé swallowed. "Then what happened?"

Roxas's eyes grew darker. "Then my father failed to completely wipe out all the witnesses on a mission. They were going to kill him when they figured out that punishing me would affect him more than simply killing him," Roxas gave her a hard look. "My father would die proudly if they had just killed him," He swallowed, his voice growing hoarse. "After…that night, they thought that my punishment wasn't enough. The Organization's punishments are not typically like that. They assigned me to assassinate your father. Demyx had leaked information that I had an interest in you. They forced him to confess since he was next on the list to be taken out."

Naminé gasped at the cruelty he suggested. "Dyme was going to…"

Roxas nodded gravely. "That's the way the Organization worked. After what they did to Demyx, the Organization knew I liked you and they knew it would hurt me to go through with it."

"But you didn't." said Naminé.

"No," Roxas shook his head. "No, Axel knew what I was going through. He knew I deserved happiness, and although he may go to jail for it, he gave me another chance to pursue it."

Naminé felt blood rush to her cheeks. "And how far will you go to get it?"

Roxas grinned genuinely and not the contorted kind she had seen briefly before. "As far as I can go without making you hurt like I did before."

Naminé touched his cheek lightly. "But why didn't you want me to remember you? Why did you say your name was Ven?"

Roxas's hand moved to her neck. "You don't understand. It's not like I wanted you to not remember me. With the Organization so active here I couldn't risk using my name just because it had an X in it. Neither could Axel or Demyx, so we all had to use our original names."

Naminé nodded. Roxas was about to lean down and kiss her when she put a finger to his lips. "What kind of medicine do you take?"

Roxa seemed upset by her interruption but answered her. "I'm bi-polar. That's why I got all messed up. When I was mad at you for no reason…I hadn't been taking my prescription. The other pills," He smiled grimly, knowing it was the question she had been about to ask. "Were some of the drugs the Organization issues to make us perform better or deal with the aftermath of missions. I'm not an addict, but I was just upset about you…and my father."

"So you don't do coke?" Naminé dared ask.

Roxas's eyes slightly narrowed. "No, that was only a few times when they were trying to use us as guinea pigs. Who told you about th-"

"So you're clean?" Naminé cut in with an earnest tone.

Roxas sighed. "Now. Sure, I've made bad choices but-"

Suddenly Naminé planted him with a kiss. Roxas was initially shocked but had no problem obliging as his previous thought faded from his mind. Naminé's hands were placed on his chest. Roxas lightly moaned from the ache in his ribs. Naminé whispered sorry, making him smile despite the pain.

To both of them it was as if they had finally found the happiness they had been searching for so long. Naminé nestled her head into his chest carefully.

"Naminé," Naminé's head rose at her name. "Do you really love me?" Roxas's eyes were searching for the truth, pain deeply embedded in them.

Naminé touched his cheek, stroking his thin cheekbone. "I love you, Roxas, but I'm not sure if I can trust you." It hurt her to say it, but it was the truth. She looked into his eyes, penetrating their depths, probing for forgiveness.

Roaxs's eyes darkened, making Naminé regret the sour words. Roxas lowered his head and nodded. "I understand," His hands reached up and held her face. "But I'll do all that I can to rebuilt the trust we once had. Is that all right with you?"

Naminé slowly nodded. "I'd like that."

A smile crawled onto her lips. Roxas breathed her name into her ear, making Naminé's skin tingle. He held her for what seemed like a century. He loved how she clung to him as if her life depended upon him. He loved how her body seemed to mold right into his as she pressed herself into his warmth. He loved her for everything little thing she was, and he hoped with all his might that one day she truly would be his.

* * *

><p>Want another chapter? Then review and tell me! And if you want to comment or whatever, REVIEW! It makes me happy! And constructive, please! :D<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

So this will, most likely, be the last chapter before the conclusion unless you guys get really creative and spur me on for another or two, but I doubt that. Personally I think some of the content in this chapter is somewhat confusing, but I just really wanted to get this up since it's a 3 day weekend and I'm exciting to actually finish a story that I'm proud of *cough cough* I hope I got the party scene realistic enough for you all, since I was picturing the social network through and through :D

Have fun and I can't wait to hear from you in your reviews!

* * *

><p>"They're all really good, Nam." said Roxas, as he flipped through the pages of Naminé's sketchbook.<p>

Naminé peered at him through her curtain of hair. "You don't think it was a bit creepy that I kept drawing you?"

Roxas's chuckle vibrated from under Naminé as she leaned on his healed chest. "If it reassures you, I kept thinking about you too," he said, making Naminé blush. Roxas grabbed onto Naminé's shoulders as he propped himself up to keep her from falling. When he got into a sitting position, he pulled her against him. "Axel's throwing a party tonight in celebration of his release. Do you want to go?" he asked her.

Naminé looked up at him. "What if I say no?" she asked curiously.

A small smile formed on his lips, but it was not warming. "I supposed we could do something quietly together. That is, if you don't want to go to a loud party."

Naminé took some time to consider her answer. "I haven't been to a party since I met you."

Roxas's smile grew, this time more genuine. "Then we should go. That way I can spend the whole party with you, just the two of us," Roxas bent his head down, covering his eyes with his bangs. "We can just blend in and no one will mind us."

Naminé thought of something as she considered his words. "Do you drink?" She couldn't help the slight shakiness in her voice.

Roxas flushed before he shook his head. "No. I made a mistake a long while ago, but I don't drink. And I won't until I'm of age, at least."

Naminé shifted uncomfortably. "OK. I'll go."

Roxas took her hand in his and squeezed it. "Hey, I know I'm not perfect, but trust me. First of all I'm your friend. Then I'm your boyfriend. I don't want anything to come between our friendship. Nothing will ever come between us. After all the unreliable things I've done, I just want to be a person you can trust."

Naminé smiled weakly. "All right, Roxas." She leaned into him and kissed him softly on the cheek. Roxas's hand was beginning to sneak up to her face when a voice called out to them.

"Naminé! Ven!" Roxas's hand quickly retreated when he looked over and saw Kairi and Sora walking towards them, hand in hand.

"Kairi!" Naminé backed away from Roxas and looked up at the approaching couple.

"Are you going to Lea's party tonight?" Sora asked her, his eyes briefly flickering over to Roxas.

Naminé nodded. "Yes, I think so."

Kairi's eyes brightened. "That's great! Then we can all hang out as a group. Oh, tonight will be wonderf-"

"Actually, I was hoping to spend the night alone with Naminé." said Roxas coldly, stressing his words dangerously.

Sora looked at him distrustfully, but not as hard as in the past. "Oh, all right then. We may see you there then I guess."

Roxas looked at him hard, nearly a glare. "Yeah, we might."

Naminé and Kairi watched as the two boys had a sharp staring match. The tension was so thick that neither of them wanted to intervene.

"Come on, Kairi," Sora said finally, grabbing her hand. Roxas kept his eyes trained on Sora as they began to leave. "We'll see you at the party, Naminé." Naminé nodded and gave Kairi a fleeting smile before Sora turned her away.

"Why do you hate him?" Roxas turned to look at Naminé at her sudden question. "Why do you hate Sora?"

Roxas crossed his arms. "What makes you think I hate him?"

He was answered by a knowing look from Naminé, making him sight. "You know he doesn't hate you, Roxas." She said gently.

Roxas ran a hand through his hair. "Look, we're complete opposites. He drives me nuts. He's naïve and foolish and…too nice for his own god. And he has the same despicable first name as me. I just don't like him, all right?" Venom laced his words, but Naminé listened to him intently. It wasn't often that he told her the full truth.

Naminé's expression softened. "Thanks for telling me, Roxas." She closed her sketchpad and looked down at her lap before she looked back at him. Slowly. Slowly she was erasing the numerous layers of Roxas's painted face until she revealed his true self. Then maybe, one day she would find the little blonde boy she had known.

"Naminé, Roxas is here." Her father called. Naminé quickly grabbed her jacket and pulled it over her shoulders and rushed out of her room. She stopped on the landing when she caught sight of Roxas in front of the dor.

While Naminé was gazing down at Roxas, he was looking up at her, their azure eyes matching nearly identically. Naminé had somewhat struggled with choosing an outfit since Kairi had assisted her for the last party she had gone to. But then she thought, Roxas had approached her no matter that night. Eventually she settled upon a denim skirt that came just above her knees, a pale blue shirt, and a white jacket. It was plain, but Roxas thought she was stunning. He casually stuck his hands into his pockets as he watched her descend the stars. Roxas wore black skinny jeans and a black button-up shirt with a thin red tie. Naminé thought he looked quite dashing.

Roxas took her hand before he moved it so it curled around her small waist. Ansem stood to the side and gave them a small smile.

"Make sure she's home by eleven, Roxas." He said sternly.

Roxas nodded seriously. "Yes, I understand, sir." He caught Ansem's eyes and nodded again. Somehow it convinced Naminé's father and he waved them off.

After her father closed the door, Roxas sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "I have no idea how your father still trusts me after…"

Naminé put a hand on his shoulder. "My father forgives you. He knows that you were telling the truth, that you didn't mean to hurt me. He also knows that you're not at all different from who you were when we were younger." She said reassuringly.

Roxas looked at her doubtfully. "You really think that?"

Naminé tilted her head. "Of course I do."

Roxas looked at her for a long moment before he was forced to accept her words.

The whole walk to the party Roxas kept his arm around Naminé while she leaned her head onto his shoulder. It was such a peaceful night so they could hear the other's breaths aside from their soft footsteps and the occasionally warm breezy gust. They could hear the music blaring from Axel's place a block away. Hearing the whoops and crashing sounds from the house, Roxas tightened his grip on Naminé. When they entered the house, Roxas reluctantly had to settle with gripping Naminé's hand due to the crowd.

Naminé looked around, taking in the hyperactive energy of the partygoers. She beagn to get nervous when she saw the cups filled with amber liquid, the smoke circles, the tight knit groups of kids around tables covered with white powder, and the sounds of screaming teenagers behind the closed doors, but Roxas took no notice, making her even more uneasy. Naminé subconsciously pressed herself into his side as they weaved through the crowd of swaying people. She uttered a quiet squeak when a boy nearly fell right on her, passing out on the floor face down. The two of them finally stopped when they reached the porch where only a few other kids were who had the nerve to smoke outside or were puking their guts out. When Naminé turned to look at them, Roxas turned her face away from such vile behavior.

"Don't pay attention to them." Roxas whispered into her ear.

Roxas placed his hands on her waist. Naminé put her arms around his neck. Together they danced under the soft moonlight and the stars in the quietness of the night.

Naminé leaned her head on Roxas's shoulder. "It's so beautiful out here tonight." she said. She heard Roxas's grunt in response.

After a while, Roxas pulled her head. "Do you trust me now? I told you that I'd spend the night just with you alone."

Naminé gazed at him seriously. "You kept your word, but trust is something that has to be built up over time, Roxas."

Roxas's eyes narrowed slightly. "I know." He said in a low voice, ducking his head down.

Naminé sighed. "You're trying so hard, Roxas. But you don't have to be so impatient. Things like trust take time."

Roxas let out somewhat of a groan and a growl. "I just…want to prove to you that I can be with you."

Roxas's words sobered Naminé and she didn't respond.

After a while, Naminé pulled her coat more snugly around her thin frame. "It's a bit chilly out here. Can we go back inside?" Roxas solemnly nodded before he pulled her back into the house, not saying a word.

While he went to get drinks, Naminé stood awkwardly, watching the crazy partygoers. She wanted to cover her ears from the loud music that threatened to make the sky fall down. She shuddered at the girls who were drunkenly stripping on the tables while the boys cheered them on and the boys who were grinding explicitly with their partners. She wanted to cover her eyes, ashamed at the sight.

"Y're a little hot thing t'night, aren't cha?" said a lilting voice. Naminé's mouth dropped open as she felt someone's hand on her upper thigh, threatening to reach beneath the hem of her skirt. She turned around to see a red-faced, hammered dirty-blonde boy gazing at her lustfully. His hands were now on her shoulders, holding her steady. "You look so innocent. I like girls like that. I betcha haven't even been touched b'fore," The boy shoved her into his body and began making obscene movements.

"Please-stop, I-" Naminé tried to struggle against the boy, but he pressed her even more into him. He was smothering her. She wanted to turn her head and search for Roxas, but she couldn't move. Then the boy started dragging her towards one of the bedrooms. Tears sprang to Naminé's eyes. Where was Roxas?

Suddenly the sound of flesh against flesh cut through the air. There was a loud crash and the boy fell to the floor from Roxas's punch. He shoved Naminé behind him before he approached the fallen boy, towering over him with a raging fire that rivaled those of hell blazing in his eyes.

"Don't you even think of touching her." He growled. People began to gather around them, the majority of the guys starting to chant, _fight fight fight_.

The drunken blonde glared at Roxas crossly. "Look man, girls at parties are totally up for grabs. I was just gonna-"

"Don't say it," Roxas's voice was thunderous. Naminé shrank back as she saw his face turn into the monster she had once glimpsed. Sora and Kairi grabbed her, separating her from the conflict.

"You fucking piece of shit. If you even come near Naminé I'll blast your brains right out of your fucking head."

Naminé began to shake. This was the monster that she was afraid of. How could she possibly be in love with someone so dangerous yet so gentle?

"Roxas, no. Don't do it. He's not even worth it." said Naminé. She watched as his shoulders slumped slightly but still retained their usual tenseness.

"Roxas," rang a stern voice. Everything but Roxas turned to see Axel making his way through the crowd. His bright red hair seemed even more flaming than usual. Axel grabbed Roxas by the shoulders, shaking him roughly. "Stop this. Listen to Naminé. Go home, Roxas. Just go home," he hissed. Axel grabbed Naminé by the wrist and shoved her and Roxas out the door. "Clean him up, Naminé. Cool him down or whatever you have to do. And be careful." Then he shut the door on them, leaving them out in the darkness of the night.

Naminé cautiously looked at Roxas who was slightly hunched over.

"I promise to protect you at all costs," He turned to look at her straight in the eye. "I promise you that. I love you, Naminé, but I don't deserve you. I'm too messed up to be with you, so I promise you this because that's all that I can offer you," He then gazed at her intensely. "And I take promises to the grave."

Naminé shook her head, confused. "Roxas, what are you saying?"

Roxas grabbed her shoulders. "You saw me in there, Naminé. It's not safe for you to be around me. Don't you get that? I thought I could handle being with you, but I can't."

"Roxas-" protested Naminé.

Roxas shook her, his hands strongly grasping her. "I will always love you, but I can't change who I am. Not after all these years. You're wrong, Naminé, I'm a different person than I once was," Roxas released her and dragged his fingers through his hair. "What can I offer you, Naminé? There is no future between us," Roxas growled, making Naminé flinch. "I was such a damn fool for thinking that I could be normal. It was childish for me to love you all these years."

"But I do love you, Roxas. You can't just think that doesn't mean anything." Said Naminé quietly, almost pleading.

Roxas's eyes narrowed. "Naminé, you can't possibly think we could be together." He said bitterly.

Naminé grabbed his forearm. "You make to many assumptions, Roxas. As long as you're there for me, Roxas, I'm fine. I've never met a boy who cares for me as deeply and gently as you," Roxas gave a sarcastic laugh. "You should stop comparing yourself to Sora with such hatred, Roxas. I love you, just as you are."

Roxas's overhanging spikes hid his eyes. "You don't mean that. No one could ever love a monster like me."

Naminé was beginning to get irritated at his negative attitude. "Well I do. I want to be with you, Roxas. You may not be perfect, but neither am I."

Roxas looked up. "Because of me," he muttered.

Naminé bit her lip. Then she did something completely unexpected; she slapped him.

"What the hell was that for?" growled Roxas loudly. His eyes flashed dangerously, but Naminé didn't back down. When he met Naminé's fierce eyes his expression softened.

"Roxas Strife, you are weak," Naminé said sternly to his face. Roxas held his hand to his burning cheek while his eyes widened. "You are completely pessimistic. Can't you tell that I love you here and now? You aren't going to die, or your father, and I am not going to love another as much as I love you."

Neither one spoke for what seemed like several minutes. Then Naminé put her hands on both sides of Roxas's face so that her one hand overlapped his.

"Roxas, you said that you take promises to the grave. Well then I promise you this; I promise to never leave you, no matter what you or anyone else says."

Roxas threw back his head, letting out a strangled sound. "Naminé," He glared at her, but not venomously. "You kill me, but in a good way."

Naminé tilted her head at him to see a smile cracking upon his face. Roxas pulled her to him, holding her in his arms. She wrapped her arms around him, hugging him. Just then a raindrop fell upon them…then a few more.

The two of them looked up just as more raindrops cascaded down upon them. As the rain intensified, they turned their gazes back to each other. They smiled before Roxas kissed her. Naminé reached up to caress his face as Roxas ran his fingers through her soaked hair. Naminé giggled as Roxas's hair began to flatten, falling into his eyes, which she pushed out of the way. Roxas kept kissing her, pulling Naminé closer, more into him. He could feel the shape of her body under her wet clothes. He smiled in their kiss deviously.

"I want to touch you," he hissed into her ear.

Suddenly Naminé backed away, leaving Roxas with a puzzled look. Naminé shook her head at him. "Just because you took that from me doesn't you get those liberties," Naminé then grinned at him. "Yet."

Laughing, Roxas swept Naminé up into his arms before he ran off carrying her bridal style.

"Where are we going?" yelled Naminé over the pounding rain as laughter escaped from her lips, pressing herself closer into his chest.

Roxas chuckled. "Somewhere." He shrugged and kissed her on the forehead before continuing their nighttime escapade.

* * *

><p>Review! They make me happy and if you have any ideas you would find would tie up the story better or that you would like to see, tell me! :)<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Ok I have to admit I hate this chapter, but I feel that there really is no good way to wrap this up, so sorry for the fluff and junk. If you have any negatives, I'll take them graciously.

Well, it feels good but sad as I close this story with mixed emotions. This is my...third story I believe on here and by far the one I am most proud of (and that's something to say). Thank you all for your reviews, they made me go on and really push myself to keep writing even when I was in a hole. Oh, and if anyone has ANY spinoff ideas that you'd like me to do or whether it's just an idea for a story, I'll gladly accept them. Thanks all!

* * *

><p>Disclaimer: I do not own any Kingdom Hearts or etc.<p>

* * *

><p>The sky was the brightest blue, matching the eyes if the two young lovers who sat beneath a familiar tree in the school's courtyard. Roxas was now taller than he had been the previous year. Naminé had grown her hair out a bit, but both of them were more or less the same as they had been before. Both Roxas and Naminé sat in the tree's shade resting from the bright sunlight. They did not pay attention to the new wrinkles in their graduation robes, rather paying attention only to each other.<p>

"Naminé! Roxas!" called a feminine voice. They two blondes looked up to see Kairi followed by Sora running over to them.

Sora had a lazy look on his face when he reached them. "Can't believe high school's over, huh?"

Kairi nudged her boyfriend at his pathetic attempt to start a conversation. "So where are you two planning on going now?" she asked, kneeling down next to Naminé. She patted the grass beside her and Sora followed suite.

Roxas seemed perturbed that he and Naminé had been disturbed, but slowly propped himself up and Naminé moved so she was not leaning on him anymore.

"We're planning on going to Radiant Garden. They had a wonderful art institute there." said Naminé cheerfully.

"You too?" questioned Kairi. Roxas had to prevent himself from rolling his eyes. She said 'we're', he thought.

Roxas nodded, not voicing his thoughts as he adjusted his blonde spikes. "Yeah, I want to go into graphic arts." he said simply.

Kairi folded her hands in her lap. "That's good that you two are going to the same place. You guys have been nearly inseparable this past year." She said teasingly, making Naminé blush.

Then Sora spoke up. "Are you staying in the dorms then?"

Kairi perked up again. "Ooh, are you going co-ed then? How do you feel about that, Roxas?"

Inwardly, Roxas was seething at all of Kairi's lame questions since he didn't know what he was going to do, nor did he give a shit. However, the prospect of co-ed dorms worried him a bit.

Roxas glanced over at Naminé. "I haven't really decided yet. Neither has Roxas." She said quietly, leaving Kairi disappointed.

"Well, you have to come visit us, OK?" said Kairi, her eyes lighting up.

"Why, where are you two going?" asked Naminé.

Kairi clasped her hands with Sora. "We're going to Destiny Islands University. It's on a small set of tropical islands. I'm sure you'd love it, Naminé!" she exclaimed.

Naminé gave her a small smile. "Yes, we will be sure to visit."

"Kairi!" yelled a girl's voice, sounding slightly annoyed and anxious. Kairi immediately rose, Sora in tow.

"Oh, that'd be Selphie. She wanted to take picture, you know her. We'd better go. See you two!" Kairi grinned before she dragged Sora back towards the building.

Naminé laughed as Roxas sighed once they were out of sight. "She's really not that bad, you know." she said.

Roxas rolled his eyes. "Well, I have to admit, she's better than Selphie."

Naminé leaned back into Roxas. Then she reached over and ran her hand over her tree, thinking back to all the times she had sat under the tree. Her smile grew as she remembered when she had met Roxas under it.

"You're going to miss them, aren't you?" Roxas's low voice broke Naminé out of her reverie.

Naminé turned to look at Roxas. "Yes, I suppose I will. But it's time to move on, right? I mean, that's what college is for."

Roxas brushed her pale hair back and kissed her on the forehead. "It's time to start over," Roxas gazed up at the clear sky. "I've been waiting for this for a long time."

Naminé nodded with a small smile. "I know you have. And I hope it's what you've needed all this time."

Roxas looked at Naminé before he grabbed her hand, holding it tightly in his own.

"Whatever we face in the future we'll face together." he said gently.

Naminé nodded, sighing into him. "Whatever happens, I'll still love you, Roxas. I'll always be with you." she said, looking at him fully.

Roxas's eyes softened and he squeezed her hand. Then he brought it to his lips and kissed it, making Naminé blush. He smiled, one that leaked into his eyes, making them appear a little less cold.

"Do you trust me?" Roxas's voice was calm and serious. His eyes wavered as he watched Naminé before she responded.

Naminé smiled slowly, but genuinely that shone as bright as the sun. "Of course I trust you," Naminé hugged Roxas tightly so as to never let go. "I always will."

* * *

><p>Reviews? Comments? Questions? Criticisms? Future ideas? I'll take em!<p> 


End file.
